Sue's Bad Boy
by crystalquirt
Summary: Kong Li finds a recipe that creates portals at random that shrink and transport whatever is caught in them. He unknowingly traps Sue and Tobey. Sid is worried that they were killed, and is captured by Kong Li. Tobue romance and adventure.
1. Chapter 1

Sue's Bad Boy

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sid, Sue and Tobey were already a year older, as was everyone else. Mr. Wu was the only one who complained about getting older around his birthday. Sid was very excited to be getting his driver's learner's permit. Getting to start driving helped him take his mind off of the strange behavior of his sister and best friend.

Sid didn't understand what was going on completely, but for weeks all the signs pointed to Sue, his little sister having a crush on Tobey - his best friend. Now she didn't care if he took a shower or when. She didn't care what he ate and even ate some of his strange meals with him. She giggled at everything he said – she was always so sweet to him that Sid had to gag on several occasions when the sweetness turned to syrup and got stuck in the back of his throat.

The WORST thing of all was that she hadn't talked to him about what was going on yet. Its not fair, brother's need to know these things about their sisters. Still, he thought breaking up with the last boyfriend, Todd was the best decision Sue ever made. Tobey would treat her right and Sid didn't feel the overwhelming need to beat Todd up anymore.

Saturday morning, only a week before the Spirit Festival and way too early in the morning Sue pounded on the door leading to 'the boys room'. Sid made Tobey get up and go to the door. The pounding would be Sue wanting to giggle and talk to him anyway.

After five more frantic knocking fits, Tobey opened the bedroom door rubbing his sleepy eyes. Before him stood a fully dressed, wide awake and excited Sue. She spoke very fast while he stood in the doorway yawning.

"Come on Tobey, get dressed! I want to take you downtown. This year's Spirit Festival will be great – I will see to your entertainment this year, with no bad surprises. . . . Well, hurry up! We're going shopping. I have your present all picked out, but I want to make sure it fits right."

"A present? What for? I appreciate it Sue, but don't really need more clothes."

"These aren't clothes you need. This is for fun and I want to at least see how you look even if we don't get you anything. All the present I need is to take you shopping and watch you try on what ever I ask you to. Get ready!"

"Okay, Okay Sue – I'll be right down." He closed the door and stretched.

Sue ran down to get something quick to eat for breakfast.

Sid had been listening and had a wicked smile on his face. "Hey Tobey, do you realize what you just agreed to?"

"I agreed to let her take me shopping and try on stuff."

"You realize she could take you to Walmart and have you try on bras right?"

"NO Way! Sue wouldn't do that to me!"

"Are you sure?" Sid pushed his face into his pillow to keep from laughing out loud.

Tobey made a face at him and went to his side of the boy's shared closet. He dug through the pile of stuff on the floor until he found a large soft package and a small square, wrapped present.

"What's that Tobey?"

"Nothing. But I am glad I was ready." he grinned.

"Not nothing, what are you up to? Ready for what?"

"Come on Sid, you will find out and you won't care anyway – you'll probably just tease me and it's none of your business." Tobey grinned nervously. Sid grinned maniacally. After Tobey put the packages by the door he took his pajamas off and only got as far as pulling his underwear on, Sid leapt out of bed and tackled him.

"None of my business huh? I WILL tickle the truth out of you! Mwahaha!"

With Tobey pinned on his stomach, Sid tickled behind his knees, his ribs and under his arms relentlessly. "No – haha – I'll – NEVER – haha – tell you!" Tobey squealed and laughed hysterically. Sue heard them and ran back up to their room tired of knocking, she through the door open.

"Sid! Get off of him! He has to get ready!"

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Finally on the road, Sid and Tobey rode next to each other, talking about nothing; the weather, bunnies, Kung Fu and how beautiful Sue's eyes were. The stores wouldn't open for another two hours so they had time to take the long way and linger at the 24 hour arcade. Tobey had the packages tied to his handlebars and wouldn't tell Sue what they were either. When he saw where they were going, he exclaimed, "Sue, you're taking me to the 'Hot Frog?' but they carry only leather clothes!"

"What? You might like them!"

"Its not that – I'm sure I would like them, but anything here will be expensive!"

"No problem, I have been saving for almost a year for a new camera, but I decided I'd rather spend the money on you."

She took him by the hand and lead him into the store. Sue found rows of leather pants on racks and went down the line until she found a pair that were black with silver studs on the pockets. She pulled them off the hanger and handed them to Tobey to try on. The dressing room was small, and some kicking was required to get the pants on.

"Tobey! It sounds like your wrestling with a bear in there – are they too small?"

"I don't think so . . . just – hang - on." Another loud thump and Tobey's sock feet poked out from under the dressing room door. Sue opened it, and he was on his back, on the floor, with his fly open.

"Tobey? Did the pants beat you up?"

"I'm okay Sue." lying on the floor he finally got the zipper up and buttoned the top button.

Sue grinned, about to laugh out loud. "They look good on you from this angle at least. Can you get up?"

"Not really." Tobey gave her embarrassed, puppy dog eyes so Sue offered her hand and helped pull him up. Once on his feet Sue whistled. "Turn around."

Tobey turned around. Sue whistled again, "Nice butt!"

Tobey blushed and struck a pose for her. "I am gorgeous, right?"

"Yes, much better than those blue silk pants you wore that time. Shall I get these for you Tobey?"

"They're a little hard to move in."

"Don't worry, the leather will stretch out in the right places as you break them in. Your white tank top looks fine on you with those pants, but how about a new white T-shirt without soy sauce stains?"

"The pants are enough Sue and I want to get you something leather t' wear too." Still wearing the leather pants Tobey, went over to a rack of leather halter-tops and picked out a dark purple style with silver studs that he thought would fit.

"Oh Tobey! I like this top! And you're pretty close with the size, thanks!" Sue exchanged the tiny halter-top Tobey picked out for a size larger, same color and style and went to try it on. The purple top went almost down to her belly button and lined with black fringe around bottom and the neckline , a silver zipper zipped up the front; which was high and wide enough to keep her well covered through the most intricate bike stunts. A wide, soft strap went around the back of her neck. The fringe followed the bottom edge of the wide strap that went across her back too, leaving most of her back bare.

Tobey whistled when Sue came back out wearing it. "Wow Sue, You look . . . Great!" he spun his finger in the air hoping she would turn around for him, and she did happily. "You-Look-Awesome!"

"Thanks Tobey, I love it – but can you afford it? Its almost sixty dollars."

"Sure can, I was saving too, but when this top is on you, it is much more fun to look at than a new 'smart' phone."

Sue blushed and they held hands to go check out. When they walked back out to their bikes, Tobey put the stuff out of his old pockets in the leather pockets and his studded belt through the leather belt loops. He tied his old pants with Sue's old, but still favorite shirt on the back of his bike. Before he could get on his bike, Sue grabbed him from behind and kissed his neck.

"Thanks Tobey – we will both look awesome at the Spirit Festival in a couple of days."

"Sid will be so jealous. Even he has to admit I look good in these. Thanks very much." Tobey laughed and turned around in her arms to hug her back. She tilted her head to the side a little and he read it as a sign she wanted a kiss. He was happy to fulfill her wish with a tight hug around her new pink 'leathers' to go with the kiss. When the kiss finally ended they both turned to get on their bikes with silly smiles on their faces.

"Uh OH."

Sue turned to see what Tobey 'uhohed' about.

He had to use his hands to help get his leg over his bike. "I hope they stretch out soon."

Sue laughed and pushed off, going slow until he could catch up. "Hurry up slow poke!" Only a half a block away from the store, it started raining and in only seconds it was a downpour!

"Come on Sue, the park is closer than Wu's, we can wait under the Ramada until this lightens up."

They rode side by side very quickly toward Chung Lee Park. "Oh no – Sue, what will the rain do to our leather clothes?"

"Actually, as long as we don't take them off until they are dry, getting them wet will help break them in."

"Lucky." Tobey observed. They coasted under the cover and leaned their bikes on one side of the picnic table. Tobey took the packages off of his handlebars and handed them to Sue.

"Here Sue, These are for you."

"Tobey? Two more presents? Oh my - the halter top is enough."

"I had these ready before I knew how beautiful you would look in a purple halter top. And I can't give you too many presents – as long as they make you smile like that."

Sue blushed and opened the big one first. Inside she found a stuffed turquoise colored rabbit to match the 'bunny' theme in her room. It was wearing a small seashell choker on a black ribbon with a purple heart in the center. "Oh Tobey this is so nice! It will go perfectly in my collection. Where did you find one with a handmade shell choker?"

"Just open the small one now!" Tobey was even more excited than she was.

The small box contained a lot of cotton balls that she gently parted so not to drop any. Down in the middle of the box she found another choker – just her size! Made out of a black ribbon with three different kinds of tiny seashells and nickle sized sand dollars alternately sewn around it. The handmade choker also had a small purple heart in the center matching the stuffed rabbits choker, and a real 'hook' fastener in the back.

Now Sue wasn't one to squeal often, but this was one of those rare times "Eeee, Oh Tobey – its beautiful!" Tobey gave her a quick hug before he took the choker from her and fastened it around her neck. It was a perfect fit. "Tobey did you make these yourself?"

"Yeah." he blushed again.

"I had no idea you were so talented, what else can you do?" Tobey leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I can do that."

"And Sue . . . Thanks for being so patient with me all this time. It's been a rough year since all that terrible stuff happened at the last Spirit Festival. You have helped me so much. I expected you and Sid, and Nana too, to be furious with me, but you were all so supportive, especially you Sue. You went out of your way to be nice to me and do things with me to reassure me that I really am part of this family and I just wanted to make sure you know that I noticed."

"It was my pleasure." Sue leaned in and gave him a kiss. Tobey pulled back a little to say something first.

"Hey Sue, I love being part of your family, but I am so glad were not related – or I couldn't do this." He guided her chin up with his finger and kissed her again. After a long kiss. They sat on a bench at a covered picnic table holding hands and watching the rain. After a few minutes Tobey asked, "What happens if we take the leather clothes off before they are dry?"

"They will dry into stiff, crunchy balls of leather that crack when you try to uncurl them."

"Oh . . . well . . . The rain is nice to watch." Tobey put his arm around her and they watched the rain.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Back at Wu's, Sid was looking for Nana. Barney said she went to the Garden, but he didn't find her there or in her bedroom or the dining room or kitchen. He was just getting his phone out to call her when he looked in the storeroom and found her there. She was watching the news on her old black and white 13 inch TV in the corner.

Nana heard Sid at the door and called him in. "Sid, come here - people are missing from Chinatown."

"What? No way - what do you mean Nana?" Sid looked over her shoulder at her phone where the news was speaking of three of their neighbors mysteriously disappearing.

"Sid, this is all happening a little too close to Wu's to be a coincidence. It feels like it has something to do with Kong Li."

"I agree Nana. I think I felt it too this time, I had a hard time sleeping last night."

"Your practice is progressing. You must train more diligently so your awareness does not interfere with your rest. Where are Sue and Tobey?"

"Sue took Tobey shopping. Tobey called a few minutes ago. They are waiting out this sudden rain storm under shelter in the park."

"Rain wasn't in the forecast was it?"

"No Nana, not for more than two weeks."

"This has to be Kong Li's doing. I wonder what he has done this time. Go out and meet Sue and Tobey. We need to find out what Kong Li is doing, and where he is doing it."

Sid tried to put on his black raincoat on his way out to his bike, but it was a struggle. The wind kicked up just as suddenly as the rain and threatened to pull the raincoat out of his hands. Once he got the raincoat on and with the hood over his helmet he was ready to brave the storm to meet Sue and Tobey.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	2. Chapter 2

Sue's Bad Boy 2

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Kong Li dropped out of one of his conjured portals to the roof of one of the tallest buildings in Chinatown. There there was already a 'sky trekker' search light set up and the strong light was just what he needed. Completely weather proof, the light projected a beam that went all the way up into the cloud cover. The light couldn't have been in a more perfect place either. Near the middle of town, the huge light was set to shine almost straight up and move in circles as part of a celebration for the grand opening of the newest 'Boiling Hot Electronics' superstore.

Kong Li stood at the control panel and reset the light for manual operation. A Shape Shifter stood behind him obediently holding an umbrella over his master when he spoke up.

"Master, might I ask what you are looking for? Those brats won't be up here."

"Idiot! I'm not looking for those brats right now. I can find them anytime I want to. I'm looking for holes in the magical force shield over Chinatown."

"Holes Master?"

"Yes, it was so fortuitous that I found the 'Jyf Uge Vai' recipe! I will explain, even though I doubt you can understand.

"As long as this recipe is kept boiling, the completely random portals that are created by this recipe will cause destruction all over Chinatown. The portals will swallow up anything or anyone that occupies the space where one appears; including the sides of Mei Hua's force shield. The constant, flooding rain will make it easier for me to see the holes and a little flooding is a small price to pay for a magic force shield that looks like Swiss cheese! With any luck at all, the portals will swallow up all of Mei Hua's rejects before she can protect them too."

"With the rain caused by the recipe, and my ability to see the holes, I will find one down low enough to get through. I will send an army of Shape Shifters back through to bring Chinatown to it's knees and get the Cookbook back from that infernal old woman!"

"Master, what happens to the people or things that fall through the portal – will you be rid of them for good?"

"What do you care? Hold the umbrella up higher."

The Shifter shut up and did what he was told. Kong Li started scanning the horizon with the very bright search light. When it reflected back at him from windows or chrome on buildings, the intense light even hurt his eyes. On accident, or perhaps on purpose he shined the light into Eunice's Limo driver's eyes as he traveled down Orchid Street. Driver couldn't see and caused a three car pile up, totaling the pink limo.

Eunice was so angry, Kong Li could hear her screaming at Driver from blocks away. Other than the little rich girl screaming, and the pookie dog yapping, it was a quiet, dark day. Black rain clouds and heavy rain over Chinatown had many people staying indoors. After almost an hour of searching the horizon for holes in the magical force shield, Kong Li sent the Shape Shifter back to his lair to add some water to the recipe so it wouldn't dry out and burn.

"Add more hot water slowly, make sure the recipe keeps boiling!"

"Yes Kong Li," the shifter bowed slightly before he walked away. When he got to the edge of the roof he grew wings and flew off the building out of site.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

After fifteen minutes in the park, the wind kicked up and blew gusts of chilly wind and sprays of rain water around Sue and Tobey. They were already sitting as close as possible and Tobey had his arm around Sue's shoulders. The temperature went down forty degrees in only a few minutes and he felt her shivering.

"Should we go Sue? Your shivering already; I guess a backless top was not such a great idea."

"I'm okay, and I love the top! This storm wasn't even predicted. It never rains this hard with high winds for long, right?"

Sue sounded so hopeful. "The temperature doesn't usually change so much so fast either. This storm is weird." Tobey pulled her even closer to lean on him with her head on his shoulder. After a half hour under the Ramada, watching the rain come down in sheets Tobey was getting restless and they were both freezing.

"Come on Sue, this rain is never going to stop. Lets just go, it won't be any colder riding and we won't melt in the rain, the wind is already making us wet again, right?"

"Yeah and anyway, by the time we get back to Wu's we'll be soaking wet and at least your pants will be broken in."

When Tobey got up from the bench, Sue gave one of his new leather back-pockets a swat and he grinned at her. They put their helmets back on and set off as fast as they could go. It was slow going up a hill and then on the way back down the next hill they picked up even more speed. The cold wind burned their skin as they went faster and faster and got wetter. Rounding a corner at the bottom of the hill, the box containing Sue's stuffed rabbit blew off her bike. She grabbed for it, but missed and the wind blew it down a manhole 'under construction' and missing its cover. They skidded to a stop and went back.

"It's okay Sue, it's wrapped in plastic so it won't get wet . . . I'll get it." He handed her his helmet and ducked under the caution tape. She put both of their helmets on her handlebars and got off to watch him. Tobey disappeared as he climbed down the ladder. Rain pounded on Sue's back when she kneeled at the edge to look down at him. With only the light from the open manhole, on this dismal day, the darkness had already swallowed him up.

"Tobey, with all this rain it's too dangerous to be down there! You could be swept away in the flood waters!"

"There's not that much water down here, don't worry - Hey! There it is!" Sue leaned farther down trying to see him. He had his phone out, using the soft glow from it to find the white package. He was too far away from the hole as far as Sue was concerned.

"Hey come back Tobey! I don't want to lose you!"

"No problem Sue! I'm like gum on your shoe – very hard to lose – even if you're trying to lose me." he shouted over the pounding rain and running water in the sewer. "I got your bunny!"

Tobey held the bagged and wrapped bunny up for her to see as he climbed the bottom rungs of the ladder. An eight foot wall of water suddenly came through the tunnel and hit Tobey so hard his feet came off the ladder.

"Tobey! Hang On!"

The water was rising faster than he could climb. Right away, Tobey was chest deep in the rushing water trying to hang on to the ladder with one hand. His other hand still held Sue's stuffed rabbit. Sue leaned down to reach for him and he handed her the rabbit first!

"No Tobey, give me your hand!"

"Throw the rabbit up, I can make it!" Sue threw the rabbit up over her shoulder and it went out of the manhole.

"Alright! Give me your hand!"

Using two hands Tobey was able to climb up closer to her. He held his hand up to her and she grabbed it. Their hands were wet and Tobey's were slimy from the walls and ladder he had touched underground.

The water current pushed Tobey's feet off the ladder again. He held onto Sue with one hand and the ladder with the other. Sue muffled a scream when she felt herself slipping. The force of the water pulled at Tobey and he couldn't help but pull on her harder than he meant to. Sue was pulled down farther suddenly. Tobey tried to pull his hand out of hers.

"Forget it Sue! Just let me hang on to the ladder, I don't' want to pull you in!"

"I'm okay, I'm secure now!" She lied. "Pull yourself up!"

Too late! Another surge of water completely submerged Tobey and pulled his hand out of hers. "Tobey!" The water was within just a couple of feet of the street now and Tobey was gone!

Sue screamed his name again and without hesitation dived in after him. The water swirled around and tossed her like a leaf in rapids. In some places there was barely enough room to breath between the top of the sewer tunnel and the water level. Tobey was caught in a whirl pool in a corner for a second and gave Sue time to catch up to him. She caught his hand and they both pulled until they were hugging each other tightly.

"No Sue! You shouldn't have come in after me!" he cried but even though they were hugging, she couldn't hear him over the sound of the rushing water. They both took a last quick breath as the water sucked them under again. When they surfaced, Tobey saw in the dimly lit tunnel ahead that the water was taking a sharp turn and was about to slam them into the wall! He fought hard against the current and also fought against Sue, who knew what he was trying to do and didn't want him to.

He won the struggle and turned with her held tightly against his chest so he would hit the wall instead of her. "Tobey!" She saw him make a face like he was having pain and grit his teeth, but they barely had time to take a breath before they were sucked under again. The sudden impact made him groan and loosen his grip on her, but she held on to him tightly around his chest.

Another turn and the water slowed slightly. They surfaced and saw they were going toward a huge, round pipe opening. The undertow in front of the pipe sucked them under and slammed them both on the sides as they went down with the fast moving water.

There was an intense flash of light right before they fell out of what they thought was the pipe. No water fell with them, and when they landed they found themselves in a still, stagnant pond-like area surrounded by bright purple rock and bright green trees and bushes. Tobey swam with Sue in front of him and they walked out of the shallow water.

"Wow, what a ride, huh Sue?"

"Yeah, I could have done without it – Are you alright?"

"I'm okay, are you?"

"I'm fine, but you stink."

"So do you Sue." They laughed at each others sewer stink. Until Sue observed their surroundings more closely.

"This water is different, it's stagnant. Still disgusting, but not sewer water anymore and this is weird - look." Tobey looked up where Sue was looking.

"There is no sewer pipe up there where we fell, but a huge, long light above us. What's holding a light that big light up?"

"That light must be a hundred feet long! Look over there Sue a computer desk, a lamp and an old car? This is just weird." Tobey exclaimed.

"You're right. Where are we?"

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Truth was, Kong Li didn't know exactly where things or people were sent when they were caught in a portal. He read the recipe to mean that they disappeared, or ceased to exist when really the key to this recipe was the last ingredient. The last ingredient the cook chose to add gave them options of where the portals would send what fell in.

The portals instantly shrunk anything or anyone that fell in. Volcanic rock added to the recipe at the end would send things or people caught in the portal to the nearest erupting volcano. Adding rose pedals would send anything caught in a portal to the nearest rose garden and be as small as a rose. Hot peppers, to the nearest fire for destruction; saltwater added, to the nearest ocean. If a tea cup was dropped in the boiling recipe, they would be sent to the nearest matching teacup and they would be tiny enough to fit inside. A meteor rock added at the end, the recipe would send victims or objects to whatever planet the rock originated from.

Kong Li used scales from a southwestern rattle snake that he obtained from Golai's House of Stuff.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sid saw Sue and Tobey on GPS while they were at the park, but before he could get there they started moving. He didn't bother to call them, because they were coming his way and he expected to run into them soon. When he didn't find them. He checked GPS again and both of their signals had disappeared.

"What? Where did you guys go, now?" He tried to call each of their phones, "Ai-ya . . . Of course-no answer," he sighed loudly and rode as fast as he could go to the last place the GPS said they had been.

Their bikes were parked standing up, leaning on a pole and both of their helmets were on Sue's handlebars like they stopped to rest or something.

"Sue? Tobey?" he called but got no answer. He recognized a bag with a package in it lying nearby as one of the packages Tobey took out of their closet that morning. When he picked the package up, he noticed the strong smell of sewer water even though it was being rained on.

"This must have been soaked in sewer water." Sid looked around and saw the caution tape around a man hole behind a stack of pallets from where he stopped.

"Oh no, they wouldn't go down there! Would they? Well Sue wouldn't, but Tobey would and Sue would go after him if he got himself in trouble. NO – SUE Tobey!" He went to his knees at the edge of the manhole to look in, but the rushing water was right up to the street surface, splashing out sometimes. What do I do? The sewer is completely full from all the rain, if I dive in I don't know when, or if, I would ever be able to get to the surface for air.

"Oh man! Please be alright!" So panicked, Sid's fingers shook. He had a hard time pressing the one button on his phone that would call Nana.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Nana stayed in the store room using the cookbook to try and discover if a recipe had been found and made. Sure enough, when she unfolded her magical map something strange was happening. Different areas randomly lit up all over Chinatown. Nana opened two more books and turned pages quickly reading a few lines here and there. What she learned, pointed to a spell that creates portals or wormhole like phenomena. There were about a dozen recipes that could do that, as well as spells. Kong Li used one of the spells several times right in front of them.

Nana cross-referenced what she had learned so far with weather patterns; specifically rain and wind. After a few minutes, she muttered out loud, "The 'Jyf Uge Vai' recipe. He must have found this most dangerous recipe and he is using the portals hoping to punch holes in my magical force shield. The problem is, even if Kong Li told us what he used for the last ingredient, the chances of finding our missing neighbors is slim. This would be a great recipe to use for travel except it is totally unpredictable, and it shrinks everything trapped in the portals to doll size.

Her phone started ringing and it was Sid. He didn't even give her a chance to answer – he was already talking very fast when she pressed the button.

". . . gone Nana! I found their bikes and helmets even Sue's present - but Sue and Tobey are gone in the sewer in the flood and I can't go after them without drowning – what if they drowned already . . ."

"Sid – Stop! I will come find you."

"What do I do! They can't breathe! I can't wait!"

"Sid! Panicking won't help them. Calm yourself, call the city and find out where the sewer goes. I will be there before you get off the phone."

Sid took a deep breath. "Okay Nana."

Nana had Sid's location on her GPS. The rain was still coming down so hard she could barely see across the street. While Sid dialed the City Water and Sewer Department, the open manhole behind him started gushing water into the street. All the manholes on that street, between two hills started overflowing. While Sid was waiting for an answer on his phone, he felt water soaking into his boots. Water was already three inches deep and rushing down the street.

He looked up the street and saw a wall of water coming at him. "No!" The waist deep water hit him hard and knocked him off his feet. He dropped his phone, as he and their bikes and helmets were swept away. He fought to keep his head above water until he slammed into a light pole. It knocked him dizzy, but he reached out just in time to grab onto it. Hanging on just with his arms took all the strength he had and still being relentlessly tossed by the water he couldn't climb any higher.

Sid managed to take some deep breaths and call for help when a sudden thought scared him, Nana may have been caught in this too! He watched the water going by for her, or anyone else that might have been caught in the flood, but really didn't know what he could do to help them even if he saw them.

Fortunately Nana had not been caught in the flood. She saw the water rushing at her in time and went high. She ran along rooftops and jumped across between buildings when necessary. She heard Sid crying for help and stopped. He was right below her. Nana drank quickly from a vial in her bag and held her hand down toward her boy. Sid opened his eyes when he felt the water suddenly stop slamming into him. The water was still rushing past, but no longer touching him!

Nana had put him in a magic field, like a bubble. Sid exhaled with relief an collapsed to the bottom of it as it rose to the rooftop. Nana lowered him to the roof before dissolving the bubble. Sid lie on his back panting and coughing, his chest heaving from the near drowning, but he managed, "Nana? Since when can you do that?"

"I could do it long before Kong Li knew how. Are you alright?"

Sid sat up, "Yeah, but Sue and Tobey! The flood is even worse – how will we ever find them? And I lost my phone before I could call the city."

"I will call." while her call was ringing and on hold, she told Sid what she had learned about what was happening and who was causing all of this. "After we find Sue and Tobey we will go after Kong Li. I know where he is."

"Nana, what if, what if we don't find them?"

"Sid, don't think like that already – don't give up. You can't even be sure they went down there yet."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

In a really dirty apartment on the third floor, looking over Oleander Street, the only clean things in the apartment were two shiny surf boards on hangers on the wall. In one corner two guys in their twenties looked into a fifty gallon aquarium. Inside, a small snake lie stretched across a log that went all the way across the tank. There was a wire lid and a four foot long florescent light lying on top of it.

"Hey dude, isn't he cool? I got him from the reptile park last week, they didn't even know! Hahaha!"

"Dude! You mean you stole a rattle snake from the zoo?"

"Sure, they had plenty, they will never notice and, Dude, this one has had his little poison sacks taken out so he cant kill me even if he bites me."

"Dude! That is awesome! I think they call it 'de-e-venoming. You can really scare your girlfriend with him,"

"Why would I want to scare her Dude?"

"'Cause scaring her would be righteous! All that screaming Dude – I can just hear her – then you could save her from the big bad snake and she would love you forever!"

"But Dude, This snake is not that big."

"That is true, Dude. Why didn't you get a bigger one? This one is only two feet long."

"Hey, I had to smuggle him out in my drink bottle. The bigger ones wouldn't fit."

"Oh - good thinking, Dude."

". . . and look at this righteous mouse I just bought for him!" He picked a little white mouse up by the tail out of a sack and dangled it over the tank.

"Snake' is probably real hungry since he hasn't eaten since I brought him home. This little guy won't have much of a chance."

"You named your snake, Snake?"

"Shut up Dude."

The doorbell rang, "Its the girls! Time to hit the waves!"

Left alone, the snake doubled back on it's log above the purple gravel, eying it's new prey, but not the mouse.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	3. Chapter 3

Sue's Bad Boy 3

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue and Tobey gazed at their surroundings with their mouths open. There was another huge round light far away, near the farthest end of the tube light above them that was putting out heat like the sun. The air around them was so hot and humid it was hard to breathe at first.

"Whoa Sue, where are we? Are we at the Exploratorium?"

"I don't know, I don't remember an exhibit like this at the Exploratorium. Where are there purple rocks like this in Chinatown, or anywhere?"

Tobey jogged up the slight incline and felt a huge leaf. "And these plants, these plants are plastic!"

Sue followed Tobey. She reached up and felt the wood over her head. "This felled tree has no bark, its smooth like driftwood or a crafted decoration from Golai's House of Stuff."

Sue led the way back to the edge of the water. The body of water was shaped like 'half' of a large pond. Across from where they were standing, the water just stopped in a straight line. Tobey followed the edge until he banged his head and fell backwards. Sue helped him stand, scolding him.

"Tobey be careful."

"I was just walking, Sue – I should be able to walk without breaking my neck - I ran into something invisible!"

Sue stepped forward slowly with her hands out and sure enough a wall of glass. Now that they noticed it, the wall of glass was huge and went all the way up as high as the light. The purple rocks and water stopped against the glass as far as they could see.

"We're in an aquarium or something!" Sue guessed.

"No way Sue, we'd be in more water right? And besides, we are too big to be in even a large aquarium. Maybe its a zoo habitat; the caretakers will find us and let us out."

"How did we get from the sewers, to a zoo habitat - if it IS a zoo habitat? What kind of animals do you think are being kept here?" Sue sounded more and more nervous.

"I don't know, there are a lot of plastic plants for something to hide in." Tobey looked around nervously.

"Sue! I hear something!" Sue froze and listened. There was scratching and irregular sounds that sounded like rocks being dislodged, perhaps by running feet with claws.

"Stay close to me Sue!" Tobey reached back and found Sue's hand. He started to pull her behind a rock nearby to hide, but too late, a white animal ran out of the plants and around the water's edge right at them!

"Run Tobey - It sees us!"

Tobey paused, staring at it. "What is that? A big dog?"

"No Tobey, not a dog!"

The animal ran at them, Tobey pushed Sue out of the way and jumped over the furry back as it ran under him. He landed behind it and turned, landing in his Snake Kung Fu defensive position. Sue leapt to the top of the rock. Tobey expected the creature to turn and charge him, but it didn't - it just kept going like it hadn't even seen them.

"Tobey, that was a mouse!" Sue nearly screamed at him.

"No way Sue, that creature came up to my knee! There is no way a mouse is that big!"

"The mouse being that big isn't anymore believable than us being very small, but here we are – you saw it with your own eyes!"

Sue jumped back down and figured out the size ratio, holding her hand off the ground as tall as the mouse was. "That would make us about six inches tall! Tobey! I told you – we're in an aquarium and what ever lives here could eat us!"

"Hey Sue, come on, even if we are in an aquarium - it's a mouse, what can it do, bite our ankles? At least we're bigger than it is!"

"Think Tobey . . . its very warm in here, and that mouse was running from something. This isn't a habitat set up for mice. The mouse must be dinner for something bigger. There must be a reptile living here; probably a snake!"

"Oh no - that's mean."

"Oh Tobey, you are even kind to mice huh?" Sue smiled, "but look at the big picture here, considering our size and surroundings we won't have much of a chance to avoid becoming part of the food chain ourselves."

"Don't worry Sue, if it is a snake, I am the perfect one to keep you safe from it! After all, I excel in the Snake style Kung Fu."

"Right, um, I just hope we don't have to fight a snake at all." Sue leapt back up on the rock and looked around carefully.

Tobey, still not believing they could be that small, picked up one of the purple rocks. Really the 'rock' was not as heavy as he thought it would be, and all the 'rocks' were the same size and shape. He had to admit that they were the same shape as the gravel Sid had for his Fighting Fish, only huge and just as brightly colored.

While he was bent down pondering the landscape, Sue screamed suddenly, "TOBEY DODGE!"

"Ahhhh!" He tucked and rolled as a huge snake bit gravel instead of him. He finished the roll up on his feet and immediately leapt into the air an instant before the snake struck again. "Ahhhh!" Tobey screamed while in mid air! The snake bit gravel again right were he had been. Tobey landed straddle the snake and was thrown back into the water when it turned suddenly.

"Ahhhh! My pants! Not wet again! Still hard to move - Help!"

Slowed down by his new leather pants, Tobey half ran - half swam away as the snake struck at him again, only to get a mouthful of water. The snake was more determined than ever and uncoiled quickly as it chased him.

"Tobey! Get out of the water – Run!" Sue jumped down off the rock and grabbed the rattling tail as it slithered away. "Oh no! Its a rattlesnake! - Tobey if it bites you . . ."

"I'm already trying really hard to avoid that Sue!"

Tobey dived into a plastic bush and leapt to the side in case it came in after him. He peeked around a rock and saw the reason the snake stopped coming after him. Sue was holding onto its tail!

"Sue! Have you lost your mind?"

"No, have you? I just saved your new pants getting fang-holes in them!"

"Sue! Don't! Just RUN!" The snake had doubled back along its own body heading for Sue!

"Run where?" Sue replied a little sarcastically, but also wished he would tell her.

Tobey ran back out of the bushes, right up to the snake and delivered a strong round kick to its scaly hide. The snake jerked but didn't stop going after Sue. Tobey yelled and kicked it again, as hard as he could. The snake rattled its tail louder, but continued toward Sue. He punched and kicked and even tried to grab around the scaly body in a wrestling hold to stop it – all it did was get angry and more determined to catch Sue.

Sue ran behind a large rock, around the trunk of a plastic tree and found herself in a corner, glass walls on two sides. The snake wound it's way around the same path and looked over the rock at her. Tobey screamed angrily at the disobedient creature and kicked the scaly hide again, but the snake was too intent on its cornered prey to care what the strange looking Tobey mouse did.

Tobey found the rattle at the end of the snake's tail and bit one of the hard rattles so hard he broke it! The snake hissed and twisted, writhing violently to get away from what ever had hurt his tail. During the snake's defensive fit, Tobey got hit hard with a writhing coil of its body and flew screaming over a plastic plant. He hit hard, high on the glass wall and cried out as the air was knocked out of his lungs. Tobey landed in the gravel behind the bushes helpless, gasping for air and dizzy from a banged head.

Sue saw the hard hit Tobey took and watched him fall among the plants. "No! Tobey - !"

Sue started running toward him, but found the snake blocking her way. She screamed and covered her head since the snake was on her, and there was no place to run. It opened its fanged mouth wide and struck at her! A white flash shot between her and the snake.

The panicked mouse had been under the plastic plant next to Sue when it thought it was cornered. When it tried to jump away, almost over Sue's head, the snake's jaws closed on the mouse instead of Sue. She loudly exhaled the breath that she had been holding and ran to Tobey as the snake slithered away with it's lunch.

"Tobey! . . . Tobey! Please be okay!"

Sue landed on her knees in the gravel next to him. Lying on his stomach, his head still spinning he pushed himself up a little, but gave up and fell back down. Sue gently touched his arm and leaned down to see his face under his hair. His eyes were open, looking at her.

"I'm okay," he panted. "There is no way I-I'm not going . . . to be o-okay and leave you alone . . . in this m-mess!" Trying to get up again, made him dizzy so he stayed down.

Sue put her hand on his shoulder. "Well thanks Tob . . . But are you sure you're alright? You don't look alright." She brushed his white bangs off of his face so she could see his eyes better. He smiled and nodded, "Just give me a minute."

Sue looked around. "At least we're out of the corner and hidden by this fake bush, I think we can stay here until you are able to get up." Sue hoped he could get up soon. The snake could come back any minute. Tobey relaxed a little and concentrated on catching his breath. After a few minutes he sat up with a little help.

"Sue I didn't see . . . how did you get away?"

"The mouse got in the way. The snake got him."

"Oh, not fair. In this artificial environment - the mouse didn't have a chance!"

"We don't have much of a chance either; the mouse saved me you know." Sue gave him an angry eyebrow.

"Of course, I'm glad you're okay Sue, its just too bad about the mouse." Tobey pulled her close for a hug and spoke into her neck. "How are we going to get out of this? How did we get here?"

Sue had been thinking about it. She ended their hug and looked at him, "Maybe knowing 'who' brought us here would take care of the 'how'. . . right? It has to be Kong Li! He must have brought us here with some kind of spell, or worse, he found a magic recipe that caused this to happen to us."

"Why do you suppose 'Giant Kong Li' isn't pressing his scary face against the glass, gloating and threatening us with his demands like he did when he had us trapped in the painting?"

"He is probably threatening Sid and Nana! I hope they're okay . . . I bet Sid's worried about us, he's probably out looking for us alone while Nana cooks up something to take care of Kong Li." Tears welled up in Sue's eyes. Tobey could tell she needed comfort and pulled her into a hug. She put her face into his neck and hugged him tight. He felt her hiccup like she was sobbing, but suddenly she pulled away.

"Tobey! We have to find a place to be safe from that snake and figure this out. Maybe if we can dry out one of our phones, we can get one to work." Sue rolled away and got up.

Tobey let her go and turned to press his face to the glass with his hands shading his eyes from the glare. "This doesn't look like any of Kong Li's lairs that I've seen, too messy and not dark enough. Do you really think our phones might work – they are too tiny?"

"We have to try don't we? - Tobey look! A man's shoe, and a woman's purse! Oh no - the snake has already eaten recently – and someone besides the unfortunate mouse!"

Tobey got up and joined her in a quick search nearby. Behind a rock they found more belongings, a child's tricycle and an umbrella with a 'lucky cat' pattern. Tobey recognized the umbrella. "Oh no, Sue – this belonged to Tiffany's little sister, Tracy."

"Even children! I wonder how many other people have been trapped here and eaten by that snake?"

"Where do you suppose the snake went? Shouldn't he have eaten himself to death by now?"

"I don't know, and I don't think we should go looking for it. We need to find a place to hide."

"But Sue, everything here is designed for the snake, I doubt we will find any place that the snake can't go."

"We need some kind of plan or maybe we can build someplace to hide, under the gravel."

"Under the gravel is more of that nasty water – we couldn't get deep enough."

"Or how about if we can get up to the lid, we can probably get out."

"But then what? Fall to our deaths off the table?"

"I don't know Tobey . . . I just . . . I'm afraid."

"I know Sue, I am too, but when we get out of this, never tell Sid that I said I was scared."

Sue smiled at his attempt at being positive but didn't say anything. She hugged him back tightly. Tobey's body was lean, but also felt so strong, she was comforted just by him being with her.

He rested his head against hers and whispered, "Everything will be okay, Sue." He turned his face into her neck and smelled her. Was it his imagination, or did even sewer water smell good on Sue? He dismissed that thought thinking he must be really tired and realized she must be too.

Tobey spoke softly, "I have an idea for a hiding place – we need some rest."

While he was hugging Sue, Tobey saw a ceramic, hollow log that made a tunnel for the snake to crawl through. He and Sue, together, pushed one end of it against the glass. Sue climbed in and Tobey pulled a large fake rock against the other opening. It only let a crack of light in around the edge and they were sure the snake couldn't get in, even if it found them inside.

Sue lie down on the hard ceramic surface and was disappointed that it felt hot too. "You know, this kind of rattlesnake doesn't live in a humid climate. Kong Li, or whoever is keeping this one isn't very knowledgeable."

"I didn't know you knew about snakes."

"I've read about them online. Different magic recipes call for scales from different snakes so I wanted to learn all I could about them."

"Well, when we get out of here, you will have to tell Kong Li that the snake is not being cared for properly."

"Haha Tobey." She rolled facing away from him, but in the circular bottom of the fake log, they couldn't roll far without sliding back down to the center.

Tobey stretched out along Sue's slender body, and yes, he noticed how beautiful she was, even soaked in sewer water, snake poo water and sweating, um glowing – like a pig. When he put his arm over her waist she put her hand over his and held on tightly. "Don't you ever leave Tobey."

"I won't, and ditto."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sid and Nana ran along the rooftops together to avoid the flood waters. On many of the streets below. All the lowest points in Chinatown were flooded. Some streets were running like rivers and the rain still had not even slowed down. They got to where the city worker told them the sewer line ended and looked down off of the roof. The area was under at least twelve feet of water in the lowest spot and there was no sign of Sue or Tobey. Tears welled up in Sid's eyes and he sank to his knees. Nana kneeled next to him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Sid - Sue and Tobey are clever, you don't know that they didn't find a way out of the sewer before the flooding happened. Try to keep it together – I need your help!"

"Help? What else can we do Nana?"

"Sid you have to think clearly - we have to stop Kong Li so the rain will stop and the flooding will subside. We will find Sue and Tobey, maybe they are already tracking Kong Li and need our help." Nana helped Sid up and they took off running again.

Sid ran closely behind Nana as they followed the rooftops to the building where the search light was still shining around. Magic was all around them as portals appeared and disappeared. Even Sid could sense the portals. As they leapt from one roof to the next, one appeared below them, and he got a close-up view of it.

They didn't know yet that these things were swallowing chunks of whatever objects they encountered and sent everything to nearby snakes. The snake that had been stolen, and a couple more at the reptile house we're the only rattlesnakes near Chinatown so that is where everything went. Most of the people and animals, shrunk down to bite sized for a snake were lost. Sue and Tobey were the only ones caught in a portal so far that had not yet been bitten and swallowed by a rattlesnake.

Nana landed next to Sid less than thirty feet from where Kong Li was operating the light and making notes with a magical quill and paper without even touching them. "Kong Li! Stop what you're doing!"

"Stop? Why, I'm just helping to announce the grand opening of this "Hot Frog Electronics - a place where my son is sure to spend a lot of his time and money."

Nana stepped forward. "Where is the recipe Kong Li? Where is it boiling?"

"Mei Hua! You sound like you know which recipe I have found already! I thought it was too much for your feeble mind to understand."

"Stop playing games! Tell Nana what she wants to know!"

"Now why would I tell you before it has finished punching all the holes it can in your magical shield?"

"Because people are disappearing! What was the last ingredient you used?"

"People disappearing huh? You know I don't care about a little thing like that when I am about to break your barrier and rule the world! Is that why Sue and Tobey aren't with you, Sid?"

Sid stuttered, "N-No – well, maybe! I don't know where they are! What was the last ingredient?"

"Well I don't see how telling you can hurt anything. Rattlesnake scales was the last thing I added."

Not knowing what rattlesnake scales could do exactly, Sid looked confused and looked to Nana.

Quietly she whispered. "Later Sid, we have to stop Kong Li first."

They charged him together, but he was ready. "You can't beat me when all four of you are here, the two of you don't have a chance."

"Really Kong Li, if we can't beat you, why haven't you won?"

"Aaaaagh!" he growled and kicked Nana away from him.

Sid tried a round kick, but Kong Li caught his leg and threw him down. Nana spoke while she exchanged a series of strong strikes, punches and blocks with him.

"Tell me where the recipe is boiling, one of these portals could catch you too you know!"

"Not likely Mei Hua. I know how to protect myself from it, don't you?" Kong Li caught Nana's hand and twisted before he kicked her in the chest. She fell, holding her wrist.

"Nana!"

"Focus on your opponent Sid."

The villain hissed and picked up his staff as Sid charged. Kong Li grabbed the punch he threw and twisted his arm like he did Nana's. Sid cried out as the momentum spun him around with his back to Kong Li and he put Sid in a choke-hold using the staff. Sid managed to get his arm away and had both hands trying to push the staff away from his throat. Nana got up and readied herself to charge Kong Li to help Sid.

"Stop Mei Hua, or this reject's neck will break and you will be completely 'reject-less' in this fight. For most people that would be a good thing."

"Kong Li you have lost your mind. Let him go!"

"There you go again, making demands, but giving me no motivation to cooperate. Well - until you think of some reason I should do anything you say, I bid you farewell."

"No! Sid!" Nana yelled and charged as Kong Li conjured one of his red portals and he jumped through with Sid.

Nana wiped a tear away and whispered, "It's no use . . . my kids! - all lost!" She looked up and screamed, "You Monster! Bring him back!"

Nana wrapped her arms around herself. This foolishness with Kong Li has cost so much – I will get Sid back and find Sue and Tobey! - I won't let it end like this!" Nana started running along the rooftop to go back to Wu's for more supplies. I refuse to believe that the flood Kong Li caused has taken Sue and Tobey from us. They are somewhere, maybe trapped, but they are too skilled to have perished so easily!

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	4. Chapter 4

Sue's Bad Boy 4

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

There was plenty of light coming through the aquarium glass at one end of the fake log; enough that Sue could see Tobey's bruises clearly while he was sealing the opening with the rock and lying down. She felt terrible that he had been so beaten up. Sue found his hand and held it gently. Tobey gave her hand a squeeze and shut his eyes.

"Tobey, are you alright?"

"Just a little sore." he rolled toward Sue and put his arm across her waist.

Poor Tobey, he protected me in the flooding sewer and from the snake just now. He must be exhausted. I know he was knocked around a lot, but I hope he wasn't injured badly. Of course we wouldn't be in this mess if he hadn't jumped down the manhole in the first place . . . or if I hadn't let my present blow off my bike. Or if I hadn't gotten him out of his bed this morning. This is just so stupid. Sue lay quietly to calm her erratic negative thoughts.

On the hard ceramic surface inside the log Sue never went to sleep, but she appreciated the chance to lie quietly and rest. Tobey went to sleep almost right away. He didn't snore, but his breathing was soft and regular and she could tell he was asleep. Both on their right sides, he held her tightly even in his sleep and held on even tighter if she tried to roll over. Not wanting to wake him, she stayed still as long as she could.

After at least an hour and there had been no sound outside the log. Sue had to move off of one of her many bruised places and rolled over to face him. Tobey moaned and when he tried to hold on, she gently held his arm up while she finished getting comfortable. He mumbled, "No Sue, don't go – I will protect you – Please!"

He was still asleep but she answered him anyway just to see what would happen. "I know you will protect me. Tobey, I love you."

Tobey smiled in his sleep and mumbled, "I love Sue. I would die before . . . Hey! Give me one of those bananas."

Sue had trouble suppressing laughter as she thought, Bananas? He must be hungry too . . . and did he say - he loves Sue! He loves me! She gently put his arm across her waist and reached under to put her arm around him. Any other time it would have been way too hot for such closeness, but Sue didn't mind at all. She only wished she had on her favorite soft cotton shirt, instead of the leather top and really hoped Nana could help her get the sewer stink out of it - her present from Tobey.

Now Sue could see Tobey's face really up close and she looked carefully over every inch, and really liking what she saw. He really is cute when he sleeps. Actually, he is cute all the time, not just when he sleeps. Tobey moaned in his sleep and licked his lips like he was dreaming of eating ice cream. Sue looked closely into his face and kissed the corner of his mouth. Wow, his breath is nice, even after all this we've been through. I feel like I still have sewer water in my mouth. So not fair.

Still sleeping, Tobey pulled her closer, hugging her like he was dreaming he had a big pillow, or teddy bear to squeeze. Watching him, and temporarily forgetting about their situation she started to wonder about the important stuff. I wonder if he really keeps dried out shrimp under his pillow like Sid said. It doesn't even matter. I don't know why I didn't see how wonderful he is sooner. He is the most compassionate, nicest guy I've ever met. Tobey really is the smartest, strongest and handsomest.

She suddenly stopped this line of thought too. Stop drooling over him – now is not the time! I have to figure a way out of this. We need a long rope to climb down after we get out. If we can just get back to Nana, well, I hope she can return us to our normal size. But I have seen nothing that we could use for a rope. She gazed out through the glass, the area brightly lit by the lights above the tank. Maybe I haven't seen anything like rope, but do know about something we cold use!

"Tobey, wake up!"

He startled, "What - the snake?"

"No, he's been quiet, must be sleeping off his last meal."

"Good," Tobey rolled over on his back and stretched. "But why did you wake me up?"

"I had an idea! We don't have to fall to our deaths off the table. Those lights will have cords plugged in near the floor. We can use them like ropes to get down."

"Your right Sue – good thinking! Lets go . . . but carefully. If we see the snake, run back here and pull the rock over. We will only leave it open wide enough to jump through. Okay?"

"Right, but hopefully we will get out of here, and never see the snake or this ceramic log again!"

Tobey pushed the rock away a little at a time watching for any movement. Everything was quiet and still so they came out and looked around for how to get up to the lid.

" I bet if we go up the branch, it will put us close to the lid on the other end. We will be able to see once we get up higher than these plants." While he planned, he was pulling at a loose piece of wood off the end of the branch to take it with him to pry the lid open.

"Ready Sue?"

"Ready." They jumped up near the end of the branch that rested in the gravel. It was plenty wide enough for them to run with Tobey leading the way carrying the piece of wood. The high end of the branch was very near the heat lamp and it got hotter and hotter as they got closer.

At the highest point on the branch, Sue could reach if she stood on her toes. She pushed as hard as she could, but couldn't lift the edge or the heavy wire lid enough to get the end of Tobey's lever in. Tobey joined her. He pushed with one hand while he poked the end of the lever between the wire and the top edge of the aquarium. The wire barely moved, but he got the end of the lever in. They tried to lift it higher, but still couldn't get it up high enough to crawl through.

"Tobey, we're gonna need something else to lift it higher; maybe another piece of wood?"

"Come with me Sue, we have to go together, I'm not leaving you up here alone."

They ran back the length of the branch and still didn't see the snake. There wasn't another loose piece of wood at the end of the branch, but Tobey found a plastic palm tree that he could pull out of the base. The tree was a little taller than he was and to make it lighter, he yanked most of the palm frawns off of the top as he followed Sue back to the branch.

"Where do you think the snake went? We've been almost the whole length of the tank and haven't seen him."

"He's probably under something. Maybe he's behind that pirate ship statue. Or look Sue, there's a motorcycle over there, and a jet ski and even a stove. Too bad we don't have time to go for a ride on the motorcycle."

"Right Tobey, too bad, lets go back up so we can get out of here."

Tobey ran a little ways, but slowed down panting in the heat and humidity. In between breaths he managed to tell Sue, "You know, this place looks and smells like they just poured most of the water out of a fish aquarium and put the snake in here. Poor thing isn't gonna live very long the way they are caring for it, do you think Sue?"

"I'm more worried about us not living very long, hurry up Tobey." The humidity was bothering Sue too, but she was too focused on getting out and away from the snake to let it slow her down.

Since she was in such a hurry, Tobey let Sue pass him on the narrow branch and he followed close behind her using the tree to balance like he was walking up a tight rope. Once they got to the top Sue mashed down on the wooden lever that they already had in place with all of her weight, which wasn't much – but she did lift the lid up a little more with Tobey's help and they got the wider, base end of the palm tree stuck through.

"The space still isn't big enough for us to climb through and the cord from the lamp is not close. We have to get the lid up high enough to climb out and get on top to find the cord before we can start down."

"Well, we can try putting the wood lever, under the plastic tree. That should lift it a little more."

They both braced and lifted with all their might and they both screamed when the branch they were standing on gave instead of the lid. The branch only slipped an inch down the glass side it leaned against, but it was enough to almost toss Sue and Tobey off. Tobey grabbed the plastic tree and caught Sue's hand to kept her from falling.

"That was close." Tobey was still smiling, but Sue was not happy at all.

"Yeah, and now we're down even lower! We won't be able to get enough leverage to lift the lid and even if we try, the branch will just fall again." Sue leaned against the glass and rubbed her eyes. "Its no use and I think I'm going to pass out from the heat."

Tobey put his arm around her. "Don't worry Sue, we will figure something out. Lets go down and get wet again, that will help cool us off."

"Yuck, that water is so nasty, and it's just as warm as everything else in here. I wish we had a fan." Sue sat down.

"I know what!" Tobey plucked another plastic palm frawn of the end of the tree and started fanning Sue with it.

"Oh Tobey, that feels nice . . ." Sue shut her eyes and leaned back on the glass for a few seconds. ". . . but Tobey, you will make yourself too hot doing that."

"I'm fine, and I want to help you feel better . . . Oh no!" Tobey stopped fanning and carefully passed Sue on the branch.

"What are you doing?"

Tobey didn't answer; he didn't have to. Sue looked passed him and saw the snake coming up the branch after them.

"Tobey! Snake! The branch moving or you screaming when the branch fell must have woken him up!"

"Hey! You screamed too Sue – it's not fair to blame me!"

"You screamed louder – and it surprised me – and I'm scared, I couldn't help it!"

"And while we're arguing, he's getting closer!" Tobey paused when he saw the tears in Sue's eyes, "I know Sue, Don't worry – just keep working on the lid and get out – I'll keep him away from you and follow once you are safe!"

Tobey ran down the branch right toward the snake without giving Sue time to argue. Sue covered her mouth with both hands and held her breath as she watched him get dangerously close to the snake. He smacked it in the nose with the palm frawn before he leapt off the branch and landed in the gravel below. Tobey danced, wiggled his hips as best as he could in those tight leather pants, turned and pointed at his butt, "Na - Na - Snake you cant touch this!"

The snake turned and went after him. Instead of being relieved that the snake was going away, Sue was more frightened than ever for Tobey! She muffled a scream when the snake got close enough to strike at him. He jumped and rolled and when he jumped back up to his feet – he had two of the purple rocks to throw at the snake. He took off running again, and when the snake didn't follow right away he bounced a purple rock of its nose.

"See, you want to follow me don't you snaky? Sue is sour, I am sweet!" Tobey's loud sing-song tone echoed eerily in the aquarium an gave Sue chill bumps. Tobey seemed to be slowing down and Sue could tell. She tried to do what he said and reached up to work on the lid. But she couldn't reach – even on her toes.

"Ahhhh!" he screamed when the next strike was a little closer than he meant for it to be. Sue spun around to see why Tobey screamed.

Sue couldn't look away from Tobey and the snake to try work on the lid again. She saw the snake strike at Tobey over and over - he rolled and ducked out of the way each time keeping its attention away from Sue, but she was terrified one of those times he would miss and the snake wouldn't! He was definitely slowing down and already breathing hard from the heat and humidity. The leather pants were hot and made his movements harder.

"Tobey's not gonna make it alone!" Sue mumbled, then she yelled at him, "I'm coming down!"

"No - Stay up there Sue – get the lid open! I got this." Tobey ran to a rock and leaned on it. He was out of the snake's line of sight, but Sue could see him. The rock appeared to be the only thing holding him up. Staring at the light above, he leaned back holding his chest as he tried to catch his breath.

"No he's in trouble, I have to help him." Sue mumbled as she started down the branch.

The snake came around the rock looking for it's black and white haired prey. Tobey smiled at it and instead of leaping out of the way he waited for it to strike. Tobey held his ground and palmed the snake hard in the snout! It hissed and slithered quickly into the plastic plants nearby.

Sue still up on the branch stopped and watched Tobey walking back toward her. "Tobey! You did it! You are really brave!" He stopped below to look up at her gloating about his victory.

"I taught him to mess with us! I was all like, yah and rah."

Tobey palm-struck the air. Sue smiled at him and waited for him to run to the other end and climb back up, she rubbed her stomach, itching from all the sweat running out from under her leather top. Looking down at her stomach, she saw the plastic bush below her move.

"Watch out!" Sue screamed as she jumped down.

Tobey looked around, too late, the snake had his mouth open already striking! He covered his head with both arms and screamed. Sue landed next to Tobey and pushed him out of the way, but as she jumped away the snake buried its fangs in the back of her thigh, close to her knee. When she hit the ground, instinctively she chopped back at the snake with the side of her hand. Her aim was good, but she broke the snake's fang off in her leg. It hurt so bad, she couldn't help but scream.

Tobey landed face down in the water and came up coughing. He turned to look back right away when he heard Sue scream. The snake was dragging her along the ground to take her away!

"Sue!" he screamed and ran at the snake taking out the only weapon he had, his pocket knife. Knowing it would only make the snake madder, he still attacked, determined to make it let go of Sue.

He jumped up on the snake's back near its head and buried the knife up to the handle in its scales. It dropped Sue and turned quickly to try and rid itself of the pest attacking it. The quick movement hit him and made him fall. "Ow – my leg!"Sue groaned and curled into a ball where she landed. She held her wounded leg with both hands and looked back in time to see Tobey fall.

". . . Tobey just run! - Nooooo!" She saw, he couldn't run. Tobey fell on his back under the snake. Mouth open, the snake came at him. He had no time to even roll away so he held the knife out straight at the snake's nose to defend himself.

As the snake tried to grab him, Tobey's hand with the knife went in its mouth. He gritted his teeth and jammed his arm in farther. A scream of determination escaped through his clenched teeth as he stabbed the roof of the snake's mouth. The snake snapped its jaw shut and jabbed him in the shoulder with his one remaining fang. Tobey screamed in pain as the snake dragged him by his arm away from Sue. They didn't make it far before the snake fell limp. Tobey fell flat with the snake, his arm still in its mouth.

Sue saw the snake stop and saw too that Tobey wasn't moving! She tried to get up to go to him, but fell back on the gravel when her leg wouldn't support her. "Tobey! Tobey! Can you hear me?"

Tobey woke up and moaned when he heard Sue yelling, the pain in his shoulder made him look and he saw his arm was still in the snake's mouth, the fang in his shoulder. He gritted his teeth and muffled a scream when he pried the snake's mouth open and the fang cam out of his shoulder.

Sue saw him moving. "Tobey! Please answer me – are you hurt badly?"

"Yeah Sue, I'm okay."

Once his arm was free, his little knife still in his hand, he lie back on the gravel. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he covered the bleeding hole in his shoulder with one hand as he folded his knife to put it back in his pocket. With his arm hurt, it was even harder to push the pocket knife into his tight leather pocket.

"Tobey? . . . if you are okay, I could really use some . . . help." Sue begged, her teeth clenched from burning pain as she wondered what he was doing.

"Oh - Sorry Sue!" When Tobey looked over and saw Sue he forgot his own pain and jumped up to run to her. He noticed right away how weak she looked, but didn't see the wound on the back of her leg. "Sue, how badly are you hurt?"

Ignoring his question she rolled onto her back so she could see him, but everything was blurry. "Tobey – you're really okay? I'm so thankful."

"I'm okay, you will be too Sue. Look at me - where are you hurt?"

Sue stared up toward the light like she didn't see him, and spoke softly. "So hot, and rattlesnakes are poisonous, even if we were our normal size I'd be in trouble. Being this small I don't think I have a chance."

"Sue! Don't talk like that – the snake won't bother us anymore, we will get out of here and . . ."

"Tob – he already bit me, his fang is still in my leg." Sue painfully turned onto her side and grabbed her leg where the fang was causing great pain. "Ow – It hurts!"

"Sue, no . . ." Tobey sank to his knees next to her and leaned over her, trying to see her wound. ". . . I told you to stay up on the branch!"

"I-I'm sorry – guess my timing was off – but I couldn't let you get bitten." She spoke very softly with her eyes closed.

"Sue! Sue!" He started to feel around the fang, but stopped his hands in mid air, afraid to touch her in case he might hurt her more. Sue had her hand at the site of the fang; the end of it stuck out between her fingers.

"Sue, let me look, okay?"

Tobey guided her hand away from the fang. She rolled over onto her stomach so he could see better. The white, jagged end of the broken fang was sticking out of her skin through her pants and a matching hole made by the other fang had already made a large blood stain on her pants. At their small size, the tiny fang in her leg looked huge to Tobey.

"We have to get it out of your leg. The longer its in there, its probably putting more poison in your body, right?"

"Right Tobey, I'm ready." He tore her pant leg a few inches to get the fabric away from the wound so he could see.

"Ok Sue?" Sue's breath was getting raspy and louder. Sue gritted her teeth, tensed even more and shivered harder in anticipation. Tobey grabbed the end of the fang and pulled. Sue screamed and kicked involuntarily. Tobey panicked and let go before it came out.

"Ehh – Sorry Sue!"

"Come on Tob - use some muscle – I can take it! Once you get hold of it -pull hard– if you have to pull on it over and over it'll hurt more."

Tears welled up in Tobey's eyes as he grabbed onto it again. "I don't want to hurt you Sue!"

This time he pulled, even with Sue screaming through her clenched teeth, the fang came out. It made a horrible sucking sound and the blood that had backed up in the tissue around it spouted out through the hole. Sue whimpered and covered the back of her head with her arms. Tobey saw the wound bleeding freely, but had nothing to use as a bandage, so he pressed over the hole with his bare hand to stop the bleeding. She whined a little more, but soon stopped, then her shivering stopped and Tobey felt her muscles go limp under his fingers.

"Sue?" Tobey reached up and ran his fingers through her hair. "Sue!" he got no response.

Tobey picked Sue up across his arms and carried her out of the sight of the snake. It bothered him to look at it. "I wish I knew another way to have stopped the snake. That was terrible. I never meant to . . ." He was sure when Sue woke up she wouldn't want to see it either, then he worried, what if she didn't wake up? I will pass out from the snakes poison too, I will never see her awake again!

Tobey sat down in the gravel with Sue in his lap to cry. "I'm so sorry Sue. Sorry I couldn't protect you . . . . why did you have to save me? I told you to stay up on the branch where it was safe – you could have climbed out and . . ." Tears choked the words out of him. She never noticed, and he never told her he had been bitten too.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	5. Chapter 5

Sue's Bad Boy 5

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The situation was looking grim for Tobey and Sue. The both had been wounded by the snake and Sue had lost some blood from the wound in her leg. They were both both suffering from the heat in the aquarium. Sue had already passed out from the heat and blood loss. Tobey thought he and Sue were waiting to die from being bitten by the rattlesnake.

Elsewhere, Sid thought Tobey and Sue had been lost in the flooding Kong Li created, but had no time to morn for his sister and best friend he and Nana had gone to stop Kong Li. Still the sadness from their loss had affected his concentration and ability to fight and he had been captured by Kong Li.

Nana was frantically trying to find him. Kong Li injured her wrist during the fight, but she didn't want to take time from looking for Sid, Sue and Tobey to have it tended to. She put a quick wrap on her wrist herself when she went back to Wu's for more herbs and magical ingredients.

In an unused, abandoned and filthy basement under a condemned office building, the shape shifter was tending the boiling recipe that was responsible for all the destruction and even loss of some of the other residents in Chinatown. The bad-smelling concoction boiled in a cauldron set up over a gas fueled hot plate. Candles and oil lamps lit the room. Another area had been cleared in the corner for Kong Li's heavy wooden tables and magic ingredients.

Walking back and fourth to bring water from the building next door, he had kicked a path through the trash and discarded building materials that littered the basement floor. To be sure the mixture didn't dry out and burn, the shifter in his dark, humanoid form stirred and added hot water to the recipe slowly and in small amounts, just as his master had ordered. Eventually the ingredients would boil to unrecognizable mush and the recipe would stop creating holes in Nana's magical force shield, but until then the shape shifter had been charged with keeping it boiling.

Kong Li had three heavy wooden tables placed along two walls many days ago after he chose this site to experiment with his new found recipe. Many magical and non-magical ingredients were called for so he brought many jars and bottles with nasty looking substances in them just in case. Whatever was in some of the bottles looked like it was breathing, or moving around. One nasty pink thing looked like it was slowly turning inside out and made a high pitched squealing noise that could be heard through the glass.

Red smoke swirled suddenly against the wall and a portal formed. The shifter looked over, only about half interested in the arrival of his 'Master.' He knew this portal was not created by the recipe he was tending. Kong Li had protected the whole building from the effects of the magic from the recipe. This portal was of Kong Li's creation and posed no threat to the shifter, except to yell threaten and perhaps give him more work to do. The shifter stood and faced the portal as Kong Li stepped through with Sid still in a choke hold.

"I have brought a guest for dinner Shape Shifter. Here - hold him. Don't let him escape while I clear a place for him to wait comfortably in."

The shifter grew extra arms and Kong Li roughly pushed Sid at him. He cried out with frustration when the shape shifter grabbed his wrists before he could attack or escape. The second pair of arms hugged around Sid's chest and pulled him tight like he wanted to slow dance with him. Sid struggled, but facing the shifter he couldn't even see what Kong Li was doing. He made a face and glared up at the shifter.

"Phew! How can you have bad breath, Shifty? Hey Kong Li, next time maybe try adding a little mint to this thing's recipe." Sid grinned evilly at the shifter.

The shifter spoke softly, "You have a sharp tongue for someone in your situation," and started squeezing tighter and tighter. Sid thought his back would break and cried out in pain, when Kong Li interrupted. "Don't kill him yet, Shifter."

The shifter eased up a little, but Sid still found breathing difficult. He still managed to spit out, "You sure are ugly. I thought being a 'shape shifter' you would have chosen a face that wouldn't cause others to vomit when they saw you." Sid pretended to barf on him.

Angered beyond control over Sid's silly teasing, the shifter let go and forcefully pushed Sid away. Sid hit the wall and smiled since it was almost exactly what Sid planned - except for the hitting the wall part.

"There you go Shifty – you've got to learn to control that temper of yours." Now Sid was far enough away he kicked the shifter in the head with a round kick. The shifter's head splatted to the side and Sid landed running for the door.

"Shifter!" Kong Li roared and jumped between Sid and the door. Sid slid to a stop and lowered into his defensive position.

"You better let me go! Keeping me here will cause you nothing but trouble!"

Behind him the shifter reformed his head and turned to face Sid and Kong Li. "Please forgive me Master."

"Get him again and I will consider not reducing you to a greasy spot."

Sid turned a little to see what the shifter would do, but he wanted to keep an eye on Kong Li too. The shifter moved first by growing a heavy tentacle and sending it very quickly at Sid, who back flipped away and landed by the recipe. Thinking quickly he picked up the bucket full of water to dump into the pot all at once to stop it from boiling.

The Shape Shifter was ready. The end of the tentacle flattened out over the boiling cauldron and prevented Sid's attempt to ruin the recipe. He turned in time to see another tentacle coming at him very fast! Sid hit the tentacle with the bucket and delayed the shifter just enough that he ran.

"ENOUGH!" Kong Li jumped in front of Sid and swung his staff at his head. Sid ducked and took Kong Li's legs out from under him with a round kick and ran for the open door.

The shifter took one of his four arms off at the shoulder and threw it at Sid. In mid air the arm shifted into a net with weights in the corners before it hit Sid across the back. The weights caused it to wrap around him from the top of his head, to his knees. Sid fell through the door into the hallway and glared at the shifter walking calmly toward him, while growing a new forth arm.

"Shifty, I didn't . . ." Sid started to say something else insulting, but the cords making up the part of the net that covered his face and head, combined and gagged him.

"No more smart remarks from you."

Sid struggled and tried to spit out the nasty 'shifter net' as he was dragged back into the room by his pants-leg. Kong Li was making preparations to extend Sid's stay in his lair. Sid and the Shifter waited while Kong Li took his staff and violently cleared one of the heavy wooden tables of the jars and a pile of books by sweeping them off on the floor. Most of the substances in the jars spilled all over the table and floor, but one green mess rolled into a tube shape and crawled like an inchworm to a crack in the wall and disappeared.

"Secure him to the table to prevent any more annoyance from him." Kong Li pulled the table away from the wall and tossed a pile of narrow diameter rope on the floor nearby and went to the cauldron to check and stir his recipe after the close call, almost losing his prisoner.

The shifter roughly spun Sid around and threw him onto the table on his back. Sid cursed through the gag and kicked, but the shifter trapped his legs with tentacles growing from his back. The shifter reabsorbed the net and gag. His four hands held Sid down and tied his wrists to the table legs over his head. Once his hands were secured he went to tie Sid's ankles.

"Don't do this Kong Li! Nana might go easier on you if you release me." Sid's voice sounded shaky. Kong Li knew he was scared and enjoyed it so "I don't need Mei Hua to go easy on me! You better hope I go easy on her, or you won't have a guardian."

Sid pulled at the ropes the bound him and tried to pull his legs away, but his weak struggles did nothing to stop the shifter. Feeling the gooey, slimy and other assorted fluids soaking into his clothes, he stopped struggling and tried to see what he was lying in.

After the shifter walked away, Sid realized he was lying in the many liquids and powders from all the stuff Kong Li spilled on the table when he cleared it with his staff. Some of it was cold, some hot, some wet, some sticky – all disgusting. A purple fluid combined with a red slime and started smoking under his forearm. He felt the heat from the mixture burning his skin and lifted his arm out of it as far as the rope around his wrist would let him. There was already a hole in his sleeve, the fabric dissolving!

"Kong Li! Get me out of this stuff – am I gonna grow a tail?"

"You are going to grow worse than a tail if you don't shut up and let me think! Shifter, you will have to get more water very soon. The recipe looks fine by the way. For once you did what I asked without messing it up! Now, just be sure you handle Nana's last reject while I am gone, will you?" Kong Li got out the notes he had been making about the holes he found in the barrier so far and briefly looked them over. The shifter stood before him with his back to Sid waiting for orders.

Sid growled and looked over at his arm. It was going to be hard to keep his arm up forever and the concoction was still swirling and smoking on the table. He pulled and struggled some more trying to loosen the rope when suddenly he smiled. He had an idea. His wrist was only a couple of inches from the corner of the table. Instead of pulling, he reached farther and unhooked the rope from the edge of the table. That gave him a couple more inches and he pressed the knot that tied the rope around his wrist in the smoking puddle.

He lie perfectly still while the rope soaked up the puddle and started smoking too. The heat burned his wrist, but he gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay quiet and still. He left his wrist in place especially when he saw Kong Li coming.

Kong Li stood by Sid, checking the ropes on his ankles, but didn't bother checking his hands. "Sid you don't look comfortable - don't worry, you won't have long to suffer in my clutches. When the magic from the recipe has punched enough holes in the force shield I will tell Mei Hua where you are so she can come try to rescue you. When she shows up I will have a nasty little party planned for her.

"Nona won't fall for it Kong Li! She can smell one of your traps even before you set it!"

"That may have been true once, but she is foolish, especially about you brats. She will come, and be so worried about saving you, her last living reject – she will get careless and go down!"

Sid gritted his teeth. "No!"

His wrist was burning and it was getting so intense it was hard to hide what he was doing. Fortunately Kong Li looked back at the shifter. "I am going back to the search light on the roof in the middle of town. Keep that recipe boiling and keep an eye on him. Can you handle two things at once?"

"Yes Master." the shifter narrowed his eyes after Kong Li turned to leave.

With the shifter's attention back on the cauldron Sid looked over at his burning wrist. He gritted his teeth and yanked as hard as he could. The rope snapped! He checked to make sure the shifter wasn't watching and reached over to untie his other wrist. In only a minute Sid had both hands free! But shifty turned and looked at him before he could get his ankles loose. Sid lie back with his arms in place like he was still tied up just in time.

"What are you looking at Shifty?"

"Kong Li said I should keep an eye on you."

"Yeah? What am I gonna do? I can't even pick my nose here."

Shifty stretched a tentacle all the way over so the end was above Sid's stomach. An eye ball formed at the end and glared right in his face.

"You are kidding right? You're gonna waist your energy with this just to watch me lie here?"

"Hahaha, no. I'm keeping an eye on you." The eyeball fell from the end of the tentacle and landed on Sid's stomach with a large wad of greenish-gray mucus.

"Ewe that's gross get it off of me!"

"Nope. Kong Li can't say I didn't do as he instructed."

The shifter retracted his tentacle and picked up a large cooking pot with a handle. "I need more water. I'll be right back. Remember I have my eye on you! Hahaha!"

"Very funny." Sid looked at the eyeball staring at him until the shifter left. "This thing can't possibly work can it?" Sid stuck his tongue out at it and it didn't respond. Well I have to try anyway - I may not get another chance."

Sid slapped the 'eye' off of his stomach and sat up, "Ewe that's so gross!" He shuddered as he started untying his ankles as fast as he could since he didn't know if the shifter could actually still see him somehow. He got his ankles loose and slid off the table into a run to the recipe. He quickly turned off the gas hotplate. "Now, it will stop boiling, but it would only take a second to get it going again if shifty comes back." Sid ran to the table that was still full of jars and grabbed two noxious looking ones.

He dumped them into the cauldron, messing up Kong Li's carefully prepared recipe, it cooled it down enough it stopped steaming, but other fumes started pouring out. Sid took a deep breath and held it on his way out.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Under her umbrella, Nana stopped on the corner of Drumm and Moth Streets to check the Chinatown news on her phone to be sure nothing else was happening. Her search for Sid, Sue an Tobey was not going well at all. She could find nothing, not even the boiling recipe in any of the abandoned warehouses that Kong Li usually used for lairs. And there was still no sign of Sue or Tobey; that worried her even more than Sid being taken away by Kong Li since she didn't know for sure what had happened to them. She suspected Kong Li wouldn't hurt Sid until he got what he wanted, which was always the cookbook.

The rain stopped suddenly changing her thoughts. Nana closed her umbrella and put it in her bag. "Sid must have somehow rendered the recipe useless – Good Boy!" she said out loud but there was no one around to hear her.

"The rain has stopped, but it will take some time for the flood waters to drain from Chinatown's streets. Please let me find Sue and Tobey unharmed!" Nana was so deep in thought as she ran along, her phone ringing startled her. She hurried and answered and was so relieved to hear Sid's voice!

"Nana?"

"Sid! You did it! I am so proud of you. Are you safe?"

"No Nana, I'm still in Kong Li's lair. I keep running into locked doors and dead ends!"

"Where are you?"

"I don't know, Kong Li has a lair set up in a basement, at least there are no windows where I was – and the floor above looks like abandoned offices, but Kong Li must have closed off and hidden the entrance somehow!"

"Sid, turn on your GPS I will be right there."

"Alright Nana, but hurry! I don't . . . No! . . . Ahhhh!" sounds of running feet, a thud and a loud crash was all Nana could hear.

"Sid! Sid! - whats going on?" she screamed, but she had lost his call. She frantically watched the little screen on her phone waiting for his GPS signal to appear.

Kong Li appeared right in front of Sid while his attention was on his call to Nana. He turned and ran, fire balls hitting the wall next to him. Sid stopped and looked back, trying the only door he came to and found it locked so he turned and ran again, another fireball barely missing him. The only other opening he saw in the hallway lead to a flight of stairs going down. He knew he didn't want to go 'down' again!

Kong Li walked after Sid creating fireballs in his palm and throwing them at him. "Sid, you will be very sorry you escaped!"

"No chance Kong Loser!" Sid ducked another fireball, it hit the wall next to him and went out. Kong Li charged. They exchanged punches, Sid blocked all but one and punched in the stomach, fell to his knees groaning. Kong Li finished with a round kick that connected with his shoulder and sent him tumbling down the staircase he had been trying to avoid. "You've ruined everything Sid – you will pay!"

Sid stood up as quickly as he could holding his arm.

"I will always . . . do anything I can . . . to ruin anything you try to do to hurt others!" Sid panted, backing away down the hall. After the fall, his phone was lying on the floor along the wall so he didn't want to get too far away from it.

"Well since you are so determined to ruin my plans, I will have to get rid of you for good Sid."

"You can try!" Sid clenched his teeth and got ready to fight him, but Kong Li insisted on talking more.

"Too bad little Sue Yi and Tobey Li didn't survive long enough to come with you. My son would have joined me when he realized my side, is the winning side."

"You are so full of yourself! Tobey would never have joined you." Sid was eying his phone, trying to think of a way to get it without Kong Li seeing him.

"Never say never Sid. He came pretty close to joining me."

"You jerk, he wasn't joining you, he was desperate to find his mother. He was planning to turn on you as soon as he saw whether or not you could really bring his mother back!"

Sid charged, thinking Kong Li would block and throw him back. He intended to fall back in a controlled manor and roll over his phone to pick it up and turn the GPS on. It would have worked but Kong Li didn't throw him. He caught Sid by his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back.

"Ahhhh! Let me go!"

"Ha, now why would I do that?"

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

At the zoo, in the reptile exhibit, several items that were unseen in the snake pit before, returned all at once to their regular size. A toilet, a child's swimming pool, several pieces of furniture, two dogs that had avoided the snakes when they were small and even a car. The caretakers were surprised and confused by the sudden appearance of the items, but hurried and got the dogs out of the snake pit before they were bitten.

It would take a lot more effort to get the rest of the debris out of their exhibit, especially the car. Two workers got on their radios and cell phones calling their superiors and a towing company. The others got busy catching the snakes so they wouldn't be hurt in the cleanup. Visitors to the zoo all gathered around to watch and cheered the loudest when the workers removed the toilet.

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In the aquarium, Tobey was trying to wake Sue up. He had her lying across his lap, holding both of her hands on her stomach. He felt her forehead and cheek. "Sue? . . . She's burning up. Hot and dehydrated. The water in here will kill us if we drink it, and Sue's right, it's just as hot as the air in here. How can I cool her off? If I don't figure out a way to cool both of us off, I will pass out too just from the heat. I don't even know what being bitten by the snake will do to us. I can't just sit here and wait!"

Tobey gently lifted Sue off of his lap and scooted out from under her. He looked up, saw where they attempted to escape with the piece of wood and the plastic tree trunk. Near to that just over the branch, was the heat lamp shining down on them. The wheels in Tobey's head were spinning as he tried to come up with something. Then down below, under the branch sat the motorcycle among the other items that had been caught and shrunk in the portal recipe.

Tobey got up slowly and staggered over to the motorcycle. It was lying on its side and he had a hard time standing it up, but succeeded on the fifth try. Sitting on the seat, panting in the heat, he found the key in the switch. "Please start!"

Inside the aquarium echoed when the little engine still roared loudly. "Yes!" Tobey cried. The problem of the long drop still existed if he rammed the glass and broke out. So that wasn't an option. Tobey took off on the motorcycle through the fake aquarium gravel like he had been riding it all his life! He rode to the glass and slid sideways turning around.

Lined up with the low end of the branch he gunned the engine and the back tire sprayed the glass with fake gravel. Tobey poured on the speed as he sped up the branch like a bullet. At the last second, Tobey jumped off. The motorcycle continued up the branch and crashed into the heat lamp. The bulb broke in a shower of sparks. The motorcycle and Tobey fell back to the gravel. Tobey screamed until he hit, the air knocked out of his lungs. He rolled over and got up as far as his hands and knees, laughing softly.

"Take that heat lamp! You can't cook Sue anymore." Tobey tried to get up to go to her, but fell right away. "Ow."

So he took a deep breath and crawled to her. "Sue, hang on. It should cool off in here soon, right?" His shoulder had stopped bleeding, but seeped a little fresh blood when he fell to the gravel. He was sweating so much it mixed with the blood and made it look even worse than it was.

Tobey sat next to Sue and held her hand. "How long does it take for snake venom to do something to us Sue? Is that what's hurting you already?" Tobey didn't get an answer, but didn't expect one. Even the sound of the motorcycle and the crash didn't wake her up. Tobey gently rolled her over and checked her wounded leg. The purple gravel under her legs was all red with blood but she didn't appear to be bleeding anymore.

When Tobey put Sue on her back again, he pulled her up and gave her a hug. "Sorry Sue – I couldn't protect you." He suddenly felt very strange. He thought he must be passing out. Is this the effect of the venom starting? He still held Sue tighter as the strange feeling turned into pain all over his body. He squeezed his eyes shut and hoped it would be over soon.

The pain increased until Tobey cried out, "Ahhhhh!" he thought he was being crushed with the glass walls closing in on him. Sue was pushed into him tighter too until there was a loud cracking sound followed by a crash and falling through space.

When he opened his eyes, he was lying in the spilled gravel, broken glass and stinky water with Sue lying across his stomach. The table with the aquarium on it had turned over. Tobey realized they were back to their real size! "Sue, were out! We're back!"

Sue was still unconscious. "Oh Sue, please wake up! . . . Why couldn't it have been me?" Tobey hugged her again with his eyes closed.

"Hey! What are you two doing in my apartment?"

Tobey startled and looked up at the two large blond college students in the doorway.

"Where is my snake? What happened here?"

Tobey looked around really for the first time, and saw they were in an apartment – apparently belonging to the guy yelling at him. He whispered to Sue, "Oh crude, we will be blamed for this and arrested for breaking in!"

Then he answered the angry apartment owner trying to stall until he thought of something, "Sorry about your aquarium man."

"Who are you! What's wrong with her?"

His friend suggested, "Dude, you better call the cops. These two are stealing your stuff."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	6. Chapter 6

Sue's Bad Boy 6

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey stood up to face the two guys who had just come in. They were discussing whether or not to call the police. Sue was still unconscious and he wondered how he would get them out of this. Briefly he thought maybe letting them call the police would be alright, at least Sue would get cared for. But even though there would be nothing missing from the guy's apartment how would he explain their conditions, and they're being there? It would raise too many questions that couldn't be answered.

He looked back up at the surfer. His friend was tapping on the his shoulder. "Actually dude, I don't think they stole anything, it looks like they brought stuff with them."

The slightly dinged up motorcycle, jet ski, umbrella, tricycle, appliances had all appeared with them. Tobey realized the stuff that had been shrunken in the aquarium was now full sized and in this guy's apartment just like they were.

Tobey thought fast, "Um, Yes! We brought you all this stuff, YOU WON!"

"Really?" the surfer's eyes rested on the motorcycle in particular. "Dude, this is great!" he and his friend started jumping up and down clapping and cheering for themselves. Tobey hoped it was over. "Congratulations, I will just take my friend and get out of here . . . enjoy all your new stuff."

As Tobey bent down to pick Sue up, the surfer stopped celebrating, "Yeah, but what happened to my snake?" His buddy added, "And what's wrong with her? She's bleeding on the carpet."

"Sue! Not again . . . " Tobey found the bleeding wound on the back of Sue's leg and covered it to try to stop the bleeding while he tried to explain. "We accidentally broke the aquarium when we brought the motorcycle in. Sue was bitten by the snake."

"Dude! 'Snake' must have crawled off someplace!" he started looking under things for 'Snake'.

Surfer dude's friend got scared, "Dude! He said she was bitten by that tiny snake! Look at all the blood! Oh man – I didn't think he could do that much damage since he isn't even poisonous."

Tobey perked up, "Wait - not poisonous? But its a rattlesnake. Of course it's poisonous."

"This one isn't, he was devenomed, Dude. They took his poison sacks out at the zoo before I stole him."

"Oh thank goodness." Tobey got tears in his eyes and hugged Sue tightly to his chest while he rocked, completely forgetting about the two looking at him he was so relieved.

"What about you Dude? Your bleeding too and you both smell like you were swimming in the sewer."

Tobey had forgotten about his shoulder too. "Um yeah, it was hard work getting all this stuff in here and I must have been bitten too."

"Well it's too cool that I won all these prizes but you have to pay for my snake and the aquarium."

"No way man! You can't expect us to pay for a snake you stole."

"Well fine, Dude - I'll call the cops and have you arrested for breaking in."

"Forget it - I will turn you in for stealing and keeping an exotic and dangerous animal and report you for letting it bite us while we were here on official _contest business_." Tobey picked Sue up carefully and started for the door while the two surfers contemplated what he said he could do.

"Oh yeah? . . . well um . . ." he turned to his friend, "can he do that?"

"I don't know man – you might wind up having to pay for their doctor bills."

"Well fine, but next time I win something, wait and come in when I am home."

"Whatever." Tobey hurried out the door, not even bothering to close it. He paused when he got to the stairs to lean on the wall he was so tired.

"Oh man, that was close." Tobey took two deep breaths and exhaled, looking at Sue he begged, "Sue, pleeeease wake up! I think you're getting heavier . . . ummm . . . just kidding."

Tobey bounced her up higher in his arms and hugged her tightly as he ran down the stairs and out of the building. He stopped in the alley and sat down with her head and shoulders in his lap. Shaking and begging his phone to work didn't help so he couldn't call Nana or Sid for help and he didn't recognize where they were. He was sure they weren't in Chinatown anymore. He pulled Sue up and hugged her to his chest to kiss her forehead.

"You're gonna be okay Sue . . . but now what do I do?"

"Did you eat the banana?" Sue finally moaned and opened her eyes smiling at him.

"Sue!"

"Ow" she said as she sat up with his help. "Tobey!" Sue hugged the stuffing out of him.

"Ah, Sue a little too tight, can't breathe." He hugged her gently afraid he would hurt her.

"Where are we? What happened? I thought that was the end for me."

"Sid and Nana must have beaten Kong Li and stopped the recipe! We are back to our normal size. After spending the whole day in an aquarium and under a heat lamp and almost eaten by a snake - how are you feeling?"

"Weak and my leg hurts. I don't know other than that . . . wasn't I bitten by a snake?"

"Oh! You were bitten, but not poisoned - the snake was devenomed."

"How lucky, but are you sure? How did you find out?"

"When we returned to our normal size and broke the aquarium, I met the jerk owner. Nice guy really – didn't have us arrested. Not the brightest bulb in the drawer though. He said the snake had been devenomed before he stole it from the zoo and he must be right, or I think you would be much sicker by now.

"I think your right, Tobey. Amazing luck, huh?"

"Well, I guess you can look at it that way. I'm not feeling very lucky. We just have to find out where we are and find a phone. Can you walk?"

"I think so."

Tobey got up and offered his hand to help her up. She got up, her face twisted with unbearable pain when she tried to bear weight on her leg. "My leg still really hurts."

"Sue wait. I'll carry you." Tobey got in front of her and put his arms around her to help her stay on her feet. "Come on, here we go."

"No, you must be exhausted - I can do walk, just give me a minute."

"Sue, walking will only make your leg start bleeding again."

Sue couldn't think of a logical reason to argue with him. He was right so she added, "Then just leave me here, at least it isn't raining anymore."

"I'm not leaving you injured and alone in a dark alley Sue. We don't even know where we are yet."

Too late for her to argue anymore, he had swept her up in his arms. When she looked up at him and started to put her head on his shoulder, she saw his wound where the snake got him too. "Tobey! You were hurt! You should have told me - let me down!"

"I'm fine Sue. Too bad when we returned to our normal sizes, our injuries didn't stay little huh? It would have been like you had a splinter in your leg." he grinned at her as they got to the end of the alley.

"Well that would have been nice but it is so totally not logical."

"Is anything I do logical? You know I try to avoid too much logic."

"That's one of the things I love about you Tobey."

"Oh man, you said it again! I was hoping when you said that I wasn't dreaming!"

Sue grinned as he carried her with renewed vigor to find a payphone. There was one on the corner in front of a laundromat when they exited the alley. Sue stood on only one leg when he put her down by the payphone and before Tobey would let Sue dial anyone, he hugged her and gave her a kiss.

"I love kissing you Tobey, but can I call Sid now? I really want a shower."

"You're right, I think, for the first time ever, I am looking forward to getting a shower – and I could really use some Caramel Teriaki Chicken too."

The payphone couldn't have been any dirtier, so Sue didn't worry about getting sewer and snake poo sludge on it as she dialed Sid. After a minute she told Tobey, "He didn't answer; it went to his voicemail. That's strange, we've been missing all day and half the night – if it were him missing I would be up waiting for him to call."

"He and Nana were probably busy with Kong Li. Maybe he lost his phone - try Nana."

Sue pulled out some more slimy coins from her front pocket and dialed Nana.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Kong Li pushed Sid ahead of him to go back to his 'kitchen', but before they could get out of the hallway Sid's phone rang. Kong Li startled. Sid took advantage and stomped on his foot as he shoved back into Kong Li's chest. He fell backwards and Sid landed on top of him.

"You BRAT!" Kong Li grabbed at him, his fingernails tearing marks across his burned forearm where his sleeve had been burned away. Sid rolled to his feet and ran back down the hall holding his arm. He took his phone out and turned the GPS on as he ran. He got a brief glance at the missed call and didn't recognize the number, but thanked whoever called and gave him a chance to get away.

Kong Li jumped up on his feet and sent a whirlwind down the hall after Sid. He stayed ahead of it until he came to the end of the hallway. The last door was locked, so he tried to hang on to the doorknob until the wind spell stopped. That plan didn't work so well; the strong wind pulled him away from the door and slammed him against the walls twice before he fell out of the little tornado. He got up as far as his hands and knees before Kong Li kicked him in the ribs and he fell back down.

While he lie on the floor, Sid shoved his phone under the locked door. Kong Li twisted his leg to make him roll over on his back.

"Hey! - OW! Take it easy!"

"I will not take it easy you brat. Where is your infernal phone?"

Sid lie on his back with his arms up, hoping to protect himself from whatever Kong Li threw at him. "I don't know where it is - I dropped it!"

"I am not ready for you to call for help – yet!" Kong Li bent over to pat Sid down, looking for his phone, but Sid brought up a foot and kicked him away. Kong Li hit the wall and Sid rolled up on his feet and ran again, this time toward the stairs, he hoped.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

When Sue tried to call Nana, she answered on the first ring and was so thankful to hear Sue's voice, she didn't let her talk.

"Sue! Is Tobey with you? Where have you been? Are you two alright?"

"Tobey's with me, we're mostly okay and we've been several places, can you come get us Nana, wait – Tobey where are we?"

Tobey read a sign across the street. "At the corner of Parnassus and Willard."

"Kids, that's all the way Downtown San Francisco! You are a long ways from Chinatown."

"I know right? Its a long, weird story."

"I will send a cab for you and tell them to hurry. I have to keep looking for Sid . . ."

Sue gasped, Tobey took the phone, but held it so Sue could hear too. "Nana – Sid's missing?"

"I'm sorry kids, Kong Li took him hostage to escape when we were fighting on the rooftop. I couldn't stop him. But Sid called just a few minutes ago to tell me he escaped and stopped the portal recipe. But Kong Li found him while we were talking, I heard him yell and he must have dropped his phone.

"Where is he?"

"It took a few minutes to get the signal, but it shows him near the 2400 block on Drumm Street, near Moth, in the industrial area."

"Nana, just get to Sid, we will find our own cab and be there as quick as we can." Sue hung up, and found some more coins. Sue dialed the cab, but before she could request one Tobey saw one going by and flagged it down. Sue hung up the phone and he helped her limp over and get in the back.

The driver could smell them before they got in. "What are you two stinky kids doing out this late at night?"

"Just trying to get home - Chinatown, Drumm and Moth – as fast as you can!" Tobey said a little louder than necessary.

"That's all industrial down there, you couldn't live there. Come on, where are your parents?"

"Meeting us at Drumm and Moth! Please hurry!"

The driver made the tires squeal showing off as he made a u-turn and headed for Chinatown. Tobey put his arm around Sue and pulled her close. "Sid will be okay – you wait, when we get there he will yell at us for staying away so long."

"I hope so. I don't think I can take much more of this." Sue broke down and cried on Tobey, he held her tight, but he was running out of comforting things to say.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Kong Li sent another whirlwind at Sid, and it was traveling fast. Sid found another door and tried the knob as he looked back at the whirlwind.

"Door's unlocked! YES!"

He ran in and slammed the door behind him. There was only one barred window and no other doors. It was dusty and furnished like an office with an empty bookshelf, desk, chair and file cabinets. He ran to the desk, and grabbed an old rotary phone. He listened for a second and slammed it back down angrily.

"Phone's dead! Looks like no ones been here for a long time. Their lease must have run out or they didn't like having Kong Li cooking up his evil plans in the basement." He looked in the desk drawers hoping to find something to help, but all the drawers were empty.

The whirl wind blew the door in as Sid ducked behind the desk. The door hit the wall above him. As it fell he somersaulted out from under it and saw Kong Li in the doorway sending another whirlwind after him.

"Oh nooooo." Sid felt himself being lifted off the floor, the desk and other furnishings were off the floor too. After being blown around the room with the furniture, Sid hit the wall, chest, shoulder and jaw first and the book case slammed him from behind. The bookcase fell back down and Sid fell across the shelves on his side. He looked up in time to see the desk hit the wall above him, break into pieces and fall on him.

"Ow, that really hurt," Sid weakly started pushing pieces of the desk off, and found now his side really hurt. "Oh man, I gotta . . ."

Out of breath just from trying to stand, he gave up and rolled off the bookcase to get farther away from Kong Li as he walked calmly toward him.

"There you go Sid, you continue to prove how much trouble you can be. You give me no choice, but to put a stop to your interference for good."

Having trouble breathing, Sid didn't say anything as Kong Li grabbed him by his ankle and dragged him out in the hallway. He tried to kick away, but it hurt, made it harder to breath he couldn't kick hard enough. He moaned "Kong Li . . . stop." weaky and tried to see where they were going, and sure enough, they were going back to where he had just escaped from. Sid kicked harder and made Kong Li drop his leg. Too slow though he rolled over and tried to run.

Kong Li smiled at his weakened pray as he threw another whirlwind at him, only ten feet away there was no chance to get away from it. Sid struggled like he was fighting air as he came off the floor. The whirlwind threw him helplessly around, bouncing him off of the walls in the narrow hallway. Kong Li created a large purple fireball in his palm and threw it too. It ignited the moving air in the whirlwind and lit it up in a fiery purple storm.

Sid screamed and covered his face as he hit the wall one more time and the air around him exploded. He fell to the floor, his pants-legs, the ceiling and walls around him were blazing with purple flames. Coughing he still tried to crawl away until a chunk of the ceiling fell on him. Sid landed flat on the floor and passed out. With a wave of his hand Kong Li put the flames out and dragged his unconscious enemy out from under the charred debris from the ceiling. He marched angrily dragging Sid back to the basement, intending to punish the shape shifter within an inch of his miserable life for letting Sid escape.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	7. Chapter 7

Sue's Bad Boy 7

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Nana arrived at the building where her GPS indicated that Sid was. The signal had not moved at all so she was very worried that he had been hurt or captured and restrained again. On the front, glass double doors Nana took out her lipstick and wrote:

'Snake' and 'Dragon' – 'Tiger' HERE!

In big letters so Sue and Tobey would see it.

But the doors were locked and the windows on the first floor were all barred with elaborate iron bars built into the poured concrete walls. So Nana went up the fire escape and across the ledge until she found an open window on the second floor. She climbed in and found the room barren except for a small object by the door. On her way to the door get into the building, she saw that the one small object was Sid's phone!

"Oh no, how did this get in here. The door is locked from the inside and he is not here. I wonder if he accidentally dropped his phone and went out the window to escape?"

The GPS signal had gotten her as close to finding him as it could so she put her phone and his in her bag, after turning off the ringers. She wanted no sudden noise to give her location away in case Sue or Tobey tried to call her again. If Sid made it out the window, he is probably safe. But he would have seen me coming or found a way to meet up with me. I have to make sure he isn't in here somewhere.

Nana cautiously went out the door and jogged silently and quickly down the hall to the stairs. On the first floor she saw why Sid couldn't find an exit. There were magical reflective barriers in place, like mirrors that hid the hallways that would have led Sid out of the building. She took out an herbal spray of her own creation and sprayed each nearly invisible barrier just once as she came to it.

The barriers dissolved, revealing longer hallways and even an exit out the back. Nana ran to the front entrance and unlocked the doors for Tobey and Sue. Now an exit won't be a problem after I find Sid. Nana found the stairs leading down to the basement and started cautiously down.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The cab driver pulled along the curb on Drumm street, just past Moth and turned around to look at his passengers. Tobey fell asleep against the door. Sue was asleep with her head on his leg, her legs on the seat.

"Hey, stinky kids - we're here."

Sue startled awake and called. "Sid!" She winced and reached to hold her leg.

Tobey helped her sit up and dug in his tight, stiff pocket for money and paid the driver for the ride. "I'm sorry about the mess and stink in your cab sir. I don't have any more money on me right now, but if you come by Wu's Garden in two weeks I should have enough to pay for the cleaning."

Driver wrinkled his nose and took the wet bills from Tobey with two fingers. "Don't worry kid, I don't have to pay for cleaning it. The company will do it."

Now fully awake Sue was in a hurry to get out, and Tobey hurried to follow her out on her side. "Thanks then."

"Wait, I don't see your parents and I don't want to leave you here alone . . . I can wait with you until they show up."

"No, it's fine, our Nana is in that building across the street.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The dark, humanoid shape shifter was waiting for Kong Li on his knees near the cauldron with the ruined recipe in it. "I'm sorry master. I don't know what happened!"

"I know what happened, I created a moron. You can't even take care of one teenager already tied to a table."

"But Kong Li, it wasn't all my fault. I think the liquids you spilled burned through the ropes that bound him to the table."

"You dare to blame me?" Kong Li dropped Sid's leg and sent a bold of magical energy at the shape shifter before he could react. Half of the shifter's body convulsed and changed shapes uncontrollable for a few seconds. When it was over the shifter turned into a gooey puddle on the floor.

Kong Li flipped Sid over onto his stomach and pulled his hands behind his back, this time using metal wire from a bale of hay he had for two goats that he was keeping in a pen in the corner. Sid moaned like he might wake up, the wire pinching and cutting into his wrists cause him pain. Kong Li smiled at the suffering he caused Sid when he saw his burned legs. He heartlessly wrapped more wire tightly around his ankles and twisted the ends closed.

When he was sure Sid was secure Kong Li yelled at the shifter. "If you can form yourself yet – get up and put him in the pen with the goats."

The shape shifter shuddered and trembled as he re-formed his humanoid shape, but he managed a slightly wilted version of his humanoid self. He yanked Sid up by his shirt and picked him up over his shoulder. Sid felt himself moving and tried to kick. "Ow! What's going on? Put me down! Kong Li – you jerk!"

"Shifter – gag him too! I don't want to hear his idle threats and whining."

"Yes master."

The shifter dropped Sid over the short fence. He landed in the hay with a grunt where the goats were lying. Both animals jumped up and frantically ran around to get as far away as they could. Both goats were large, white and had fully developed long, pointy horns. While they ran around Sid yelled and tried to roll into a ball to protect himself from panicking goat hooves stepping on him.

"What are you doing with goats in a basement in Chinatown Kong Loser?"

The shifter got back to Sid with rags to use to gag him. Sid twisted and turned his head trying to avoid having the nasty rag shoved in his mouth, but the shifter held his nose and got it in. Kong Li bragged while Shifty was tying the gag in.

"Those goats will be my new servants and now that you are here, you might just be their first victim since you ruined my recipe. Don't worry, I will cook the portal recipe again after I have more servants to take care of you and Mei Hua and I find more ingredients. Shifter, horn's please."

The shifter tightened the knot behind Sid's head to keep him gagged and grabbed the bolt cutters. The pen was made up of pipe and wire and was small, only about six feet square. The shifter grabbed the first goat and cut just a tip of it's horn off. It didn't hurt but the goat still didn't like it. It bleated loudly and struggled. The other goat ran over Sid trying to get away as the shifter grabbed it and did the same thing to the tip of its horn.

Sid watched as shifty took the two bits of horn to Kong Li and he laid them on the table near where he was mixing a bowl of other ingredients. One of the goats started rubbing his horns on Sid's back and butt like he wanted to play. Sid whined through the gag and tried to roll away. The goat laid down by him when he didn't play back and the other was nibbling on the pile of hay they were lying in.

The wire really hurt and Sid moved around trying to get more comfortable. His pants were in burnt shreds from just above the knee down and his skin was burned, in spots, red with purple streaks. The hay hurt and itched where it touched his legs and he couldn't even rub them. Wrapped up in his misery with the goats they startled when Kong Li yelled a the shifter.

"Shifter, we have a visitor on the way. Welcome and show Mei Hua how to get down here would you?" Kong Li was watching a pot where he had created a recipe allowing him to see anyone else in or near the building. "And don't mess it up this time!"

The next scene Sid saw was the shifter and Nana coming through the door; his tentacles wrapped around her with her arms pinned to her sides. She didn't see Sid lying in the hay with the goats looking at Kong Li instead. "You monster! What have you done with Sid?"

"He's comfortable. I have done nothing to him yet. Shifter, shut her up." the shifter gagged her with one of his own tentacles. Kong Li continued, "Too bad about my son and Sue. They were washed away in the flood I guess. They could have helped a lot with this party I am planning."

"Sid ruined the portal recipe and it will take me weeks to find all the ingredients to start it again." Kong Li gestured toward Sid and the shifter turned so Nana could see him. He struggled and tried to yell through the gag. She got tears of relief in her eyes seeing him move. At least he was still alive but she couldn't tell much more about his condition.

Nana went limp in the shifter's tentacles as he dragged her back to Kong Li. Kong Li saw, "What did you do to her Shifter? I wanted her awake to watch what I do to Sid."

Just then Nana came to life. She dropped low and raised her arms to open the tentacles. She slid right out of his grip, straight down and surprised him. She went right into a dragon kick and took his shifty legs out from under him.

Kong Li was yelling and firing blasts of magic energy from his staff. They all hit the shifter instead of Mei Hua. She was too fast.

Sid watched anxiously wishing for a chance to help her. He scooted around and started kicking the side of the goat pen the goats ran behind him and started bleating. Nana charged Kong Li but instead of using Kung Fu on him she opened her hand when she got close enough and blew a magical herb mixture at him. Kong Li growled and cursed at her as he felt his muscles freezing. In seconds he looked like a very scary statue.

The shifter charged at Nana again and she turned to blow the freezing herb at him too, but his tentacle got to her first and knocked her hand open. Another tentacle grabbed her hands and prevented her form getting more ready. She rolled back to kick, but he just captured her foot in his torso.

Sid yelled and made threats through the gag he wore, but they ignored him. He had tears in his eyes when he saw Kong Li starting to move again.

"Mei Hua! You will pay for this!"

Kong Li put the pieces of the goats horn in the pot and stirred for a few seconds before it glowed. He pulled some of the liquid into a turkey baster and walked over to Sid and the goats.

Sid watched as he grabbed each goat and forced some of the recipe down their throats. As the magic started to work, yellow surrounded the goats and grew into larger shapes. Taller than most humans. When the yellow flashed and went out, two goats were up on their hind legs with more human-like bodies, cloven hooves still for feet but hands in place of their front hooves. They were still covered in white goat hair and had thick powerful necks supporting a goat like head with very long horn on top of their heads.

Sid felt very small lying under them. They stepped over the fence that had been holding them in and stood alongside Kong Li. Nana was watching in amazement and horror.

"Shifter, put Mei Hua in the pit. She can watch me kill her last reject later. We have business to tend to."

The shifter dragged Nana to a floor tile that revealed a trap door. He opened it revealing a deep square hole with very straight sides lined with flat brick. There was no ladder or easy way down. The shifter suspended Nana over the pit with his tentacles for a moment before he dropped her. She screamed as she fell. So did Sid, through his gag. He scooted over to the side of the goat pen and tried to kick his way out again. Nana, no! I don't know how deep it was, but it sounded deep! The fall could have killed her! Terrible thoughts ran through his mind as he frantically tried to get loose. Blood ran from his wrists from the wire cutting him.

Kong Li ignored Sid and announced. "There is no one left to stop me! Shifter – we will go tear Wu's apart and dispose of Mei Hua's son and grandson. We will do whatever we have to do to get into the stone to get that cookbook."

No! Barney and Mr. Wu! Overcome with fear and pain from his injuries Sid stopped struggling and lie still on his stomach sobbing into the hay.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The cab driver pulled away and left Sue and Tobey standing on the corner. They looked around, Tobey saw the lipstick message on the glass doors across the street.

"Look! A message from Nana on those doors! She means us, and Tiger is Sid."

"No Duh Tobey, hurry!"

they ran in and stopped for a moment, they could faintly hear Nana yelling! The sound was coming from below so they ran down the steps near by. So sure there was no one left who would be looking for his prisoners, Kong Kong Li hadn't even bothered to lock the door. They ran in following the sound of Nana's voice. She knew they would be there any minute.

Sue and Tobey quickly located the trap door and opened it. Nana was standing up in the small area almost thirty feet down. Tobey leaned down to yell. "Nana! Are you alright?"

"Fine Tobey, but we aren't out of this yet! You have to get to Wu's before Kong Li and the shifter – he has created two powerful goat servants from magic is planning to tear it apart to find the cookbook, and he will hurt Barney and Calvin."

Nana! Where's Sid?"

"he's in the corner, tied up in the pen Kong Li had the goats in."

They looked and saw Sid's dark form lying in the hay behind the little fence. Sue started to limp over to Sid but Tobey stopped her for a second.

"Sue – I gotta get to Wu's! Can you help Sid and get Nana out?"

"Yeah, be careful Tobey." Sue grabbed him and gave him a kiss right on the lips. "We'll get to Wu's as soon as we can. Watch yourself – don't get hurt!"

Tobey smiled and turned, running for the stairs and already wishing he had his bike. "Nana?"

"Go to Sid first Sue! I am fine."

Sue limped over to help Sid, and Nana, now that the trap door was unlocked at the top used her left hand and foot on one wall, her right hand and foot on the other and walked up like a spider to get out. She quickly joined Sue at Sid's side.

It took Sue an extra few seconds to get over the little fence but once over she dropped to her knees next to her brother. He was lying very still, face down and didn't seem to know she was there. "Sid? Can you hear me? . . . Sid . . . please be okay!" She touched his shoulder shook him gently as Nana kneeled on his other side.

Sue hurried and untied the gag gently untangling it from his hair. "Oh Sid!" Nana saw how chewed up his wrists were from the wire when she started untwisting the ends to take it off. "Sue, his legs have been badly burned too. We have to get the burns cleaned."

Sue stroked her brother's hair and repeated his name while Nana got the wire off his ankles and got a bowl of clean water from the shifter's bucket and a clean bar towel from the counter. They lifted Sid out of the hay and while Nana rinsed and wiped the bits of hay and dirt away from his burns, Sid moaned. "Ow, no more please! Get away from me!"

"Sid, its not Kong Li! It's me . . . your sister."

"I must be dreaming, dammit. Sue and Tobey were lost in the flood, but I can still hear her voice."

"Sid – no, I am really here – Tobey and I are fine, well mostly."

Sid opened his eyes and rolled over a little to see her. Recognition showing on his face for an instant, he forgot how bad he hurt and sat up quickly to hug her. "Sue! I thought you were dead!" Now Sid had tears of joy running down his cheeks. "and Tobey is okay too?"

"Yes, and Nana is here."

Nana interrupted, "But kids, we have to go. Tobey went ahead to get to Wu's to try and stop Kong Li from hurting Calvin and Barney and finding the recipe. Sid was weak, but once they helped him up on his feet he was able to walk alone. They went up the stairs and out to the curb to flag down a cab.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey didn't beat Kong Li and the shifter to Wu's garden, but got to the kitchen in time to save Barney. He watched for a few seconds, sizing up the situation. The shifter had Barney in a tentacle threatening him. Tobey didn't see Kong Li or the goat demon things that Nana mentioned. They were probably already out in the garden trying to break into the scholar stone.

The shifter yelled at Barney, "Where is the cookbook?"

"I don't know which one you want, but the kitchen is full of cookbooks, take all you want! Just leave us alone!"

Tobey ran in silently and kicked the shifter's tentacle so hard it snapped in two and released Barney. "Run Barney! Get your dad and run!"

"Okay – but what is that?"

"An Alien!" was the first thing Tobey thought of as the shifter angrily went after Tobey. Who dodged the first charge and rolled away from the tentacle the shifter made from an arm. Barney did what he was told and ran. He and Mr. Wu ran through the dining room and out the front door with Mr. Wu complaining the whole time. "Barney? What's going on? I don't want to leave – I have things to do!"

"But dad – there's an alien came for our earthly knowledge! Tobey is holding it off while we get away."

"Aliens? You're nuts Barney"

"No I'm not, remember the monster Herb that tied us up? He was one too!"

Now Mr. Wu got scared. "Lets get out of here, let Tobey handle it! It will be good for him – builds character - call the government!"

They ran down the sidewalk in front of Wu's. Mr. Wu on his cell phone trying to convince someone in Washington DC that there were aliens trying to take over his restaurant.

Back in the kitchen, Tobey had expertly avoided all of the shifter's attacks so far. As he landed from the last leap he made to get away from a tentacle, he shouted, "Where's Kong Li, Shifty?"

"Destroying the Scholar Stone, while I destroy you!"

"Not gonna happen!" Tobey grabbed a boiling pot of noodles off the stove and threw it at the shifter. The hot water melted him into a puddle of goo. Tobey even remembered to turn off the burner before he ran for the garden. There, just as expected he found Kong Li using his two goat minions to try and break the stone. The tall, muscular creatures rammed the stoned over and over with their horns, but so far the Stone had not even cracked.

Tobey ran out slid to a stop near the koi pond and yelled, "Stop!"

Kong Li turned slowly to look at Tobey. He yelled back at the goats "Keep at the stone!"

Then to Tobey he said, "Well if it isn't my son. We all thought you and the girl were dead. Sid was really down about it. He didn't fight well at all and will probably die of his injuries."

"Shut up! Sid is strong, he won't die . . . no matter what you do to him!"

"Foolish boy. And your Nana is trapped. No one will ever find them. They will starve to death if they don't die of their injuries. Do you miss Sue as much as her brother did? Well I guess you wouldn't – you must have let her drown while you were saving yourself."

"Ahyhhhh!" Tobey charged and palmed Kong Li with both hands driving him back and making him fall over a bench. Kong Li stood up calmly and cracked his neck.

"You know Tobey, when your Nana dies in the pit I created just for her, you will have no family at all. No one to take care of you. You will have to go back to the orphanage until you are eighteen."

"No you're lying! They are fine!" Tobey's voice cracked he was so upset. Even though he was exhausted and hurt all over he attacked Kong Li again. His shoulder felt like it was burning where the snake bit him and his punches were not as controlled and strong as usual.

Inside, his mind was racing, wondering how he was going to stop Kong Li all by himself. He had to protect Wu's garden and the magic cookbook alone until the others could get there. He knew Sue was in no shape to help with her injuries and if Sid and Nana were as badly hurt as Kong Li said they might never show up to help him. Tobey was really frightened.

He regretted that he didn't take the time to check on Sid or Nana before he ran out, leaving Sue, who was already injured to rescue them alone. What if Sid was injured seriously and couldn't help Sue get Nana out of the pit? She was barely able to bear weight on her leg and wouldn't be able to help them much alone!

All the thinking going through his mind, distracted Tobey from the fight and Kong Li got in a lucky kick. Tobey flew through the air, hit the bench and slid off the other side holding his stomach. Kong Li was on him again in a second and pinned him on his back.

"You know Tobey, I won't kill you now. It would serve you right having to go back to the orphanage alone. No one to teach you magic or help you improve your Kung Fu. You would be no threat to me anymore."

Tobey got his foot against Kong Li's body and kicked him off. "Aaaghh!" Tobey yelled as he ran at him, delivering punches and kicks, all blocked by Kong Li. In fact, Kong Li yawned making Tobey even angrier. Being angry hurt his chances in the fight even more than his injuries and exhaustion.

Tobey fell after another kick from dad. Kong Li dragged him to his feet by his shirt and pinned him against the Scholar Stone. The goats stopped and waited for further orders. Kong Li spoke softly, his face only an inch from Tobey's, making him wince and grit his teeth.

"It would be a shame to waist what talent you have already. You already fight like me – you are just as strong as me – you just need practice and guidance from someone who won't waste your time and keep you distracted like Mei Hua did . . . you know, my style was that of the snake when I first learned Kung Fu. It is still my favorite, but now I have mastered all the styles!"

That's impossible, it can take a lifetime of intense training to master just one style!" Tobey argued.

"Shows how much Mei Hua has kept you in the dark. Tell you what. Since you are my son I will give you a choice. Come with me now. Join me and you won't have to go back to the orphanage."

"What makes you think being with you is better than the orphanage? I will still be alone."

"Oh Tobey that cuts me to the quick - I am your father – you won't be alone. Even if you don't grow to love me, you will grow to respect me and admire my skills in Kung Fu and Magic. Once you get to know me better I know you will understand me – my blood runs through your veins. I can teach you any magic you want to know, some magic that Mei Hua has kept you shielded from because she thinks it too powerful and dangerous. And if you want to start out with the Dragon style, the highest level of Kung Fu, that is where we will start."

Tobey glared at him and felt the smooth surface of the scholar stone behind him with his hands, visibly relaxing a little. "Well dad, you're wasting your time trying to get in the scholar stone. Nana hasn't kept the cookbook there since you tried to take over Chinatown with a heat wave."

"Good boy, then where is she keeping the magic cookbook now?"

"I don't know, but if I go with you know, will you leave Wu's alone?"

"I still must have the cookbook!"

"I know, but . . . to save Mr. Wu and Barney I will come back alone and find out where she was keeping the cookbook and get it for you without destroying Wu's Garden or endangering anyone."

"Alright son. We will try it your way . . . Shifter! Goats, come, we are leaving."

Kong Li created the red smoke and a portal appeared just of the ground. The shape shifter went through first and Kong Li put his hand gently on Tobey's shoulder to guide him in next. Tobey took one more look at Wu's Garden, and hid the tears in his eyes from Kong Li as he jumped through the portal. After Kong Li jumped in it disappeared, but his evil laughter could still be heard in Wu's Garden.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	8. Chapter 8

Sue's Bad Boy 8

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Mr. Wu hid in a gift shop four doors down from Wu's Garden. He was still on the phone trying to convince someone there were aliens in his restaurant and the shopkeeper had no luck making him leave. "You are like a frightened mountain, Mr. Wu."

Barney bravely came back to see if Tobey needed help. Really, he wanted badly to see what the aliens were doing. He reached up and held the bell on the front door when he came in to silence it. The kitchen was empty so he went down the hall toward the Garden. He got there just in time to see the two tall goat warriors disappear into the red portal followed by the dark humanoid alien he fought with. Tobey went next and disappeared! Barney gasped and whispered, "Tobey, you lucky guy!"

After Tobey went in, the most evil looking alien with pale blue eyes stepped through laughing and Barney wondered, "I wonder if he is happy because he learned about human restaurants or if that isn't even laughter. Maybe that noise is the way they communicate! And I was the first to hear it – except for Tobey – he has all the luck."

Barney ran to tell his dad the coast was clear and the aliens were gone. Calvin came back right away with Barney, but in less than a minute had himself all upset and angry when he saw damage done by the shape shifter.

"Barney! I have to go lie down . . . I can't stand this! My restaurant damaged by aliens looking for cookbooks and I guess Tobey won't be working for a while. We will be shorthanded for a while and I expect you to keep up! I never thought aliens would be the cause of my restaurant's premature failure!"

Before Calvin went to his room, he added on more thing, "Barney! Clean up this mess."

Barney sighed and went to work. After only a few minutes, he heard someone coming in through the front door so he ran out of the kitchen to see who. Sid and Sue were walking together, each holding the other up. Sue helped Sid into a booth. It looked like he barely made it into the booth before he would have fallen. Sid put his head down on the table and shut his eyes. Barney saw Sid and Sue, but excitedly spoke to Nana first.

"Nana! Where have you been? You missed all the action! Oh, and what's wrong with you guys?"

Sue stayed close to her brother kindly rubbing his back. Lost in thoughts about Sid and Tobey, she didn't answer Barney, but Nana did. "We have had a hard night. Barney, did anything strange happen here while we were gone?"

"Yeah – how'd you know? Four guys - or rather - some old alien, and three monsters were here looking for our superior restaurant knowledge!"

"What? Didn't you see Tobey? Where is he?" Sue interrupted.

"I know - it's hard to believe aliens were here, but Tobey saw them too! It was some guy who could grow tentacles, two eight foot tall goat men and another scary dude that looked like some sort of evil warlock from another planet with pale blue eyes and veins showing on his forehead."

Nana spoke calmly, "Its not as hard to believe as you think, Barney. Where's Tobey."

"Tobey went with them when they left."

"NO! You mean Tobey was captured?" Sue jumped out of the booth and hopped over to Barney on one leg, grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Was Tobey hurt?"

Sid mumbled 'Ai-ya' into the table and turned his head away so Barney wouldn't see tears in his eyes.

Barney blinked at Sue and tried to explain, "No, Tobey went willingly. They left through this weird, red smokey ring. It must have been some sort of space ship. I wish he would have invited me – I would have gone too."

"Oh No-no-no-no." Sue was very upset and gave herself a hug. She slid into the seat across from Sid with her arms wrapped around herself like she was cold. She felt the pink leather top Tobey gave her and started to cry. Sid still had his head down on the table and had covered his head with his arms like he wished he could hide.

Nana stepped closer to her grandson, "Thank-you for telling us and taking care of things alone Barney. Where's Calvin?"

"Dad was pretty freaked out about having aliens in his restaurant and went upstairs to lie down." Barney noticed tears in Sue's eyes. "Oh Sue, please don't cry over Tobey, I'm sure they will bring him back. Maybe he will bring back technology or some other awesome stuff as the alien's gift to us! Tobey has made first contact! - He is so lucky!" Barney ran back to the garden to look at the sight where 'first contact' was made. He sized up the area planning to build a memorial plaque.

Nana joined Sue and Sid in the booth. Sue moved over so Nana could sit next to her. Sid sat up wiping his eyes.

"Nana . . . do you think Kong Li has tricked Tobey again?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't think it possible after last year and all the time we spent together all year talking about what happened at the Spirit Festival. Tobey seemed to understand completely the truth about the whole situation with Kong Li and his mother. But the festival is coming up again. Kong Li may be trying to do something that involves Tobey again."

Sid frowned angrily. "There is no way Tobey would do this! He would never just join Kong Li suddenly unless Kong Li found a mind control recipe or was threatening us somehow maybe."

"That could be it bro. Tobey was here all alone with Shifty, the goat men and Kong Li. He was injured and exhausted from our adventures in the sewer and with the snake. He probably thought he wouldn't have a chance in a fight and may have promised something to Kong Li in return for leaving Calvin and Barney unharmed. Maybe he promised to get the cookbook later, intending to escape later instead.

"I can see that happening . . . Tobey will do anything to protect us and the cookbook - how will we rescue him?"

"Maybe we won't have to. Tobey is clever, he will escape, right Nana?" Sue really hoped she was right, but talking about Tobey brought tears to her eyes again.

Nana frowned, unsure how to answer the worried siblings. "Probably he will escape on his own. We can be pretty sure he will come back either way."

"Either way, what do you mean either way?"

"Well, he will either escape and come home or pretend to work for Kong Li long enough to get home and get our help, or . . . he will be working for Kong Li and trying to get the cookbook."

"No Way Nana! Tobey wouldn't help Kong Li for real!"

"Take it easy Sue, I think, either way he will come to us before we can find him and rescue him. I will put a decoy cookbook under the tile in the garden again. Tobey knows that is where I hid it the last time it wasn't in the Scholar Stone. If Kong Li comes back with him, maybe a decoy cookbook there will help him escape."

"Yeah, lets hope he remembers." Sue reached over the table and held onto Sid's hand as she put her head down on the table. Nana saw how tired and hurt they both looked and decided the best thing they could do to help Tobey was to rest so they would be ready to help if he needed it when he did come home.

"Sid, Sue, go upstairs and get cleaned up. Lie down and I will be up soon with food and to make sure you are both alright. Sue, your leg needs a bandage. You both will need to get as much rest as you can before Tobey shows up. . . especially if Kong Li shows up with him." They nodded and helped each other upstairs.

Nana mixed some herbs to treat Sid and Sue's injuries then she prepared the 'decoy' cookbook by combining several of the old books in the storeroom to make it look like the magic cookbook. She hid it in the air and water tight compartment under a tile in the garden. She thought Tobey was sure to remember it's location. The last time she hid the real cookbook there and hoped he would check there first, whether he was working for Kong Li or just using it to distract Kong Li long enough to escape.

Sue and Sid finally got showers and were asleep on their beds when Nana got to their rooms to check on them. She gently woke Sue so she could bandage her leg. "Nana, what about Tobey? Are you sure we shouldn't be out there looking for him?"

"No – we have to trust that Tobey knew what he was doing when he left with Kong Li. We should stick together, and we cant all leave – what if he does come back? You and Sid need some rest or you will only feel worse and won't be able to help Tobey if he needs you."

"There is no way he joined him Nana, I just know it!"

"I don't believe it either. What ever Tobey is doing I am sure he is doing it to protect us and keep the cookbook safe." Nana touched Sue's cheek and kissed her forehead. Try not to worry Sue. She smiled weakly and closed her eyes. Nana went to check on Sid and found him sleeping so well she decided not to bother him.

Nana went back to the storeroom and tried to mix the prophesy recipe hoping she could see what was going on with Tobey.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey dropped out of the red portal into what Kong Li called 'home' an instant before his 'dad' did. He cringed and hugged himself like he was cold when he looked around. It was damp, dark and cold and there were no windows. He thought maybe they were underground, but he had no way of knowing.

"Whoa, where are we?"

"Later my boy . . . I am so glad you chose to join me, your long lost father."

"How can you be my 'long lost' father? You knew where I was – we see each other all the time. Why didn't you tell me before?"

"Dear Tobey, you wouldn't have believed me. Mei Hua had already turned you against me before I knew that she had adopted you."

"Well, what changed that made you tell me last year during the spirit festival? What made you think I would believe you then?"

"It's just like I told you, I was desperate to bring your mother back – and time was running out."

"But Nana said bringing my mother back was impossible – you killed her."

"Well bringing her back was possible then – and I didn't do anything to her – I loved your mother. If Mei Hua had not stopped us your mother would have come back and you would have had her back for a whole year already. Now it is too late, you mother is lost forever and it is Mei Hua's fault!"

"No." Tobey said softly. He felt very sad, but not sad about his mother. Nana had spent a lot of time with him to help him understand what really had happened. He knew Kong Li was still lying. He was upset at hearing him say all those terrible things about Nana and knew he was still trying to trick him. He was also scared he might never see Sue, Sid and Nana again if he let Kong Li know he wasn't falling for his lies. He thought he might not see them again anyway. They were in bad shape last he saw them and he didn't know if they were alright or not.

Tobey noticed too that the shifter and the goat dudes didn't come through the portal when he and Kong Li did and worried about where they went.

Kong Li had been talking the whole time Tobey was lost in thought. Tobey turned his attention back to his enemy just as he said, "Now the prophesy can come true in just a day. You know son, there will be advantages to having a dad who's the ruler of the world. You won't need clingy interfering friends anymore – you will have everything you ever wanted. That reminds me though. Give me your phone."

"But I want friends! Their interference just shows they care about me! You only care about what I can do for you!" Tobey reluctantly handed Kong Li his phone. Kong Li even took the battery out to be sure Tobey's phone was turned off and couldn't easily be used. He put the phone in his pants pocket and the battery in a pouch under his cape.

"Not true son, I care about you and I want to share my power and knowledge with you. You have a bright future, and you will soon realize it!"

Kong Li continued, "It is too late now to bring your mother back. My how she would have loved to see how you grew and what a fine boy you are, but it is impossible now. The good news is now we can be together. I am you last living relative and you are mine. You really are, or will be, as powerful as I am!"

"Okay – I believe you." Tobey said in a small voice. "What's next?"

"You look like you could use some rest. Come, I will show you your room. You will have your own bathroom with a shower too." Kong Li guided Tobey to walk in front of him, but Tobey stopped. "Wait a minute, you said the prophesy was about us bringing my mother back. And you also said that can't come true now – its too late! Nana told me the true prophesy was that you would conquer and rule the world – with your son . . . Me? Sounds like Nana was right!"

"You are smart, just like your dad. Watch you do not get too smart for your own good." Kong Li shoved him a little harder to get him to go down the corridor.

"Yeah, okay – don't push, dad. Do you have any magic cleaning recipe to get sewer stink out of leather? He looked down at his leather pants, thought of Sue and wiped tears out of his eyes. Really, he was already missing them, his heart aching for Sue especially. He hoped they were all okay, but he and Sue had just started to get closer – his dream had finally come true – and now they were pulled apart.

"Cheer up boy, you won't miss Mei Hua and those siblings for long."

"It's not that, I think my new pants are ruined!" Tobey lied.

"Son. Believe me, you will have as many pairs of leather pants as you want and plenty of training to keep you busy – and no more public school. You will be home schooled in martial arts and magic. Only the important things!"

"No more school sounds great, father." No more school did sound great, but the word 'father' actually hurt his throat trying to come out. "But how will I become a scientist, actor, secret agent, or a ninja extreme motocross racer? And I really hoped to marry Sue one day."

"Your father will be King. You can do whatever you want, have any girl you want. I have been prepared for your return for years, Tobey."

Kong Li showed him to a rather tiny, barren room. It was barely big enough for the mat on the floor with a small hard pillow and a small dresser and no closet. There was a tiny bathroom through a door in the corner with a toilet, sink and tiny shower. It was so small he would have to stand over the toilet to open the shower door. No windows anywhere. Kong Li ignited a flame in the palm of his hand and used it to light the four candles, one on each wall and an oil lamp on the dresser.

"But its so small, and how I am supposed to sleep on that? I like fluffy pillows and my blankey."

"Don't worry. As soon as I am sure I can trust you, you will have a soft king sized bed, a bath with jets and all the comforts money and magic can buy. You will have your own wall of computers and all the games you want, and your own kitchen to practice magic in. Everything is set up, just waiting of you – so behave and you will have it all very soon!"

Tobey managed a smile. "Gee, if I had known I might have joined you sooner."

"Yes . . . sooner." Kong Li said slowly. "Go ahead and get freshened up and take a nap for as long as you want. You will find bed clothes in the dresser. I will have food ready for you when you are ready to eat."

"Thanks."

Kong Li closed the heavy, solid wooden door when he left and Tobey heard it lock! "Hey! Wait" Tobey rattled the heavy iron handle. "You locked me in! Why did you lock me in?"

Kong Li yelled through the door, "Just until I know I can trust you. I will be back to get you for diner in a few hours."

Tobey felt really scared now. He turned around and looked at the tiny, dark room. It seemed even smaller now that he knew he was locked in. Sweat was already appearing on his forehead.

"Oh man! It's getting smaller – and there's no air in here!" he covered his head with both arms and sank down to sit on the floor against the door. Remembering Nana's training, he practiced his breathing exercises and in a few minutes he was able to start looking around. Well not 'around', but focused on one thing at a time, like the dresser. The whole time trying to imagine and believe that there was an exit he could use if he wanted to and the door was not locked. He found blue sweats in the dresser and shook the dust and cobwebs out of them.

It was very hard to keep concentrating on what he was doing – even though he simply wanted a shower and to change his clothes. He had to stop several times and calm his breathing, even in the shower. At least Kong Li left him soap and shampoo to use. He left the bathroom door and the shower door wide open while he was showering and water got everywhere. When he got out he found only one towel and no hair dryer. There wasn't even any electricity in the room for a hair dryer.

He pulled the blue sweats on and lie down on the cold, thin mat with a wet head and thought about Sue. Soon he did fall into a fitful sleep, but it was only because he was exhausted.

While he slept he rolled around and mumbled talking to Sue mostly. His dreams turned into nightmares about being trapped and he started sleepwalking. Tobey got up, started crying and pounding on the cement wall - screaming to be let out. Kong Li actually showed up like a good, concerned parent, opened the door and caught him as he ran out. Tobey fought, screaming. "I can't breathe!"

"Tobey, wake up – you're having a nightmare." Tobey woke up, but screamed again and thrashed wildly when he saw Kong Li was right in his face, holding his arms. "No! Kong Li! Sue help me!"

Kong Li had no trouble holding onto Tobey as he said quietly, "Well son, I didn't want to do this, but I guess I have to. I can't have you hurting yourself – and you need to be rested and fit to fight to be any use to me!" Kong Li pinned Tobey against the wall with his elbow in his neck and took out a vial with a small amount of liquid in it. All he had to do was force the top of the vial between Tobey's lips and the liquid ran into his mouth between his teeth. All it had to do was get in his mouth to be absorbed into his system.

Still very disoriented, Tobey continued to yell and kick until he suddenly went limp in Kong Li's arms. Kong Li put him back down on the mat. "Now you will sleep my son, and when you wake you will be ready to 'honor your father' and get me that cookbook!"

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The candles and oil lamps in 'Tobey's room' had burned out by the time Tobey woke up. He startled awake and realized he was freezing.

"Oh darn, it wasn't a nightmare – I really am in dear old dad's house."

The fear setting in again Tobey rolled over toward the door and in the dim light he could see that his door wasn't just unlocked, it was standing open into the corridor. He scrambled to his feet and ran out barefooted into the corridor. Once out, he leaned against the wall to look around. Kong Li was standing in the shadows near the open door watching him.

"Son, come eat something. I trust you rested well?"

"Not really, no! Why did you have to lock me in?"

"Oh yes, I know you are scared of small places, but that room is not that small."

"It's small and dark enough – and I was alright until you locked the door and trapped me in there!"

"Never mind Tobey, you will get over your fear of small places very quickly once I start your training. It is a weakness we can't afford for you to be clinging to anymore."

"Clinging? I don't . . ."

"Let's not discuss this anymore son, come, eat something."

Even Tobey had to admit the spread of food Kong Li offered him was impressive. After he ate, Kong Li handed him a package. Something soft, wrapped in tissue paper and tied with string.

"Those are your training clothes, go put them on. It's time to go to work, son."

Tobey only went as far down the corridor as he needed to so Kong Li wouldn't see him changing clothes. He really didn't want to go back in the room Kong Li told him was 'his'. In a minute, he appeared again near the end of the corridor where Kong Li was waiting for him. He wore tight black stretchy pants and black running shoes with black socks. A padded black nylon vest with a long-sleeved black shirt under it covered his top half.

"You look ready for a fight m' boy. Come . . ." Kong Li created the portal. ". . . we will pick up my . . .um . . . OUR servants on the way."

"The goats and the shape shifter?"

"Yes."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

After a few hours with no luck using the prophesy recipe Nana ran out of ingredients and decided if she had fresher ingredients perhaps it would work better. She went back to the kitchen and found Barney. "I am running to the market for some herbs and your dad isn't up yet. Sid and Sue are resting upstairs. Please keep a close eye on things here and if anything weird happens call me right away!"

"Right Nana. You're still worried about the aliens coming back, right?"

". . . um right Barney, but call me if anything strange happens, especially if you see Tobey, okay?"

"No problem Nana. I will take care of everything."

No sooner did Nana leave out the front door, then a red portal opened up in the garden, near the koi pond.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey was not aware of stopping to pick anyone up while they were in the portal. In the portal he wasn't aware of anything, not even moving, they traveled instantaneously, but when they stepped out of the portal in Wu's garden, the goat men and shape shifter were with them.

Tobey argued, "I wanted to do this alone-father. I can get the cookbook, they will trust me – thinking I escaped and no one will have to be hurt or fight at all."

"We don't have time for games like that - the spirit festival us upon us! Goats – tear this place apart!" The goats started by breaking the statue in the fountain. Next the started breaking even the stone benches and uprooted plants for no reason.

"No – wait, please!" Tobey begged. This was not going like he had hoped. His 'dad' ignored him and ordered, "Shifter - you go in and keep them distracted by any means necessary while we find the cookbook."

The shifter took Tobey's likeness right before his eyes and turned to go in. Tobey started to follow, objecting, but Kong Li held his arm preventing him from following. "But Kong Li, um dad . . . you promised you wouldn't anyone if I joined you!"

"The shape shifter has orders to not hurt them too badly."

"I didn't hear you give him any such order!"

"Then we better hurry Tobey - Now where is the magic cookbook!"

"I think it's over here." Tobey pretended to start looking. He got a shovel and started digging near a rose bush stalling for time until he could figure out what to do. The goat-men continued destroying things for no reason, things that couldn't possibly be holding the cookbook, like the pansy's growing in small flower pots near the picnic table.

Inside, Shifter-Tobey headed for the stairs to go up to find the other two kids and their Nana first. Unfortunately Nana had just left for the market and Barney was in charge. When Barney saw who he thought was Tobey returned from the aliens, he got excited and didn't call Nana like she asked him to. He ran out into the hall and practically tackled him.

"Tobey! They brought you back! What did you learn? Where did you go? Did they give you anything to bring back with you? Maybe a cure for cancer or designs for a warp drive!"

Shifter Tobey answered in that strange imitation of Tobey's voice that always echoes just a little. "What are you talking about? I gotta go."

"No! Tobey wait! Your voice sounds strange – was it something the aliens did you you?"

"Aliens? You're nuts – I have stuff to do – go away or you will be sorry." Shifter-Tobey tried to walk away, but very excited to hear about the aliens, but Barney grabbed him by the arm. "Wait – tell me what they did to you Tobey – you don't seem like yourself at all!"

Shifter-Tobey easily twisted his arm out of Barney's grip and grabbed him by both of his arms in one smooth movement. Barney uttered a cry of surprise when Shifter-Tobey slammed him against the wall so hard the spoons in the kitchen fell off their hangers.

"What? Wait Tobey - I only wanted to know what happened to you!"

"I'll show you what happened!" The shifter turned half of his cute-boy face a nasty green color and shaped the same half like a monster. Half of a big drooling mouth, a big warty nose and a huge eye bulging from the socket. To finish the 'look' the shifter added a festering wound infested with maggots on his cheek.

"Ahhhh! GROSS! ANOTHER ALIEN!" Barney yelled just before the shifter punched him in the stomach and then when he bent over, hit him in the back of the head. Barney fell unconscious at the shifter's feet. His head drooped limply back as the shifter dragged him to the closet by the front of his shirt. An extra tentacle helped put the muscular wrestler inside. He got ride of the tentacle and took the shape of Tobey's whole face again just as he saw Sue coming.

Sue heard commotion in the garden and came down to go look since she never went to sleep anyway. She came limping around the corner wearing her favorite tank top with shorts showing her bandage just above her knee. Nana had just finished bandaging her leg with some very special healing herbs to help ease some of her pain and make sure there would be no infection in the deep puncture wound. She looked up just as the Shifter-Tobey closed the closet door.

Sue squealed, "Tobey! You escaped? I am so happy! You did escape right? You couldn't have joined Kong Li could you?"

Shifter Tobey grinned the goofiest Tobey smile he could muster and it fooled Sue. Even limping severely she got to him in two running strides and hugged him. "Tobey – what happened? We were so worried about you!"

The shifter smiled at her and put one arm around her shoulders, but his hand went up under her shirt as she started to hug him.

"Hey . . . no – I am happy to see you, but we haven't even discussed this sort of thing yet." The shifter-Tobey still didn't speak. Knowing Sue would recognize his voice was not Tobey's voice. He turned from her and ran up the steps three at a time. Sue, feeling confused by his strange behavior followed much more slowly, limping and thinking about what happened.

"Tobey's never done anything like that before to me. In fact, to get him to kiss me the first time I practically had to make him touch me he was so embarrassed; then a scary thought . . .

"Oh no! That's not Tobey!" Sue tried to hurry up the stairs after him. Concentrating on trying to hurry without falling, Sue looked up just in time to see Tobey's palm coming at her face. She couldn't duck fast enough and the heal of his hand hit her hard in the eye. She fell back down the stairs. She uttered a tiny shriek as she fell, but unfortunately she didn't cry loud enough to wake Sid.

Shifter-Tobey smiled as he watched her falling from the top step. Sue landed at the bottom, crying and holding her leg. "Ow! Tobey – what's wrong with you?"

"Maybe I'm hurt that you think I would join Kong Li."

"Tobey? - your voice? You are not Tobey! Sidmmmm . . ." The shifter sent a tentacle down and gagged her with the end of it in her mouth before she could yell for Sid. Sue gagged like she might throw up on him. On purpose, the shifter banged her head on the wall and she fell limp.

The shifter smiled again and turned to go find Sid, wearing Sue's face.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey couldn't stand no knowing what was happening inside. He had not heard a sound from inside, but was sure someone would have come out by now to see what the noise was about in the Garden. The goat men were back slamming into the Scholar Stone and his 'dad' was yelling at them. Looking at the Stone, Tobey remembered the last time the stone had been damaged, when Kong Li melted it.

He remembered that the real cookbook had not been in the scholar stone. With everything that was happening he wondered if Nana would have arranged for a little Kong Li surprise and spotted the false tile in the garden where she hid the cookbook before. He hesitated though, what if she really did hide the real cookbook there – Kong Li might get away with it!

"But I have to think of something to get the shifter out of the restaurant!" Tobey mumbled and thought, if it is the real cookbook – I will keep it away from him until Nana can come help me – if she hasn't been hurt. I can do this! He went over to the tile with the shovel and stuck it under the edge. Kong Li was already watching him and saw the tile move.

"Tobey!" Kong Li pushed Tobey down and lifted the tile himself with his fingers. Kong Li's eyes sparkled as he took the book out of the hidden compartment.

"I finally have the cookbook. You will be rewarded, Son! . . . Shifter, Goats, lets go – I have a feast to prepare!"

"I'll get Shifty!" Tobey ran inside before Kong Li could stop him. He ran down the hall and past the kitchen and slid to a stop when he saw Sue lying at the bottom of the stairs. "Sue!"

He ran over and touched her shoulder. "Sue!"

She opened her eyes and screamed, "You aren't Tobey!" Even with her injured leg she kicked to get him away from her. He landed on his back in the dining room. "Wait! Sue no! I'm the real Tobey!"

"Tobey!" Sue started crying and tried to get up to go to him, but couldn't. Tobey kneeled next to her. "Sue, stay still. Did you fall down the stairs?"

"Yeah, Shifty pushed me. Tobey, where have you been? I was so worried."

"I couldn't beat him Sue. He promised to leave you all alone if I joined him, otherwise he promised to destroy Wu's garden and kill all of you – but now he isn't keeping his promise!"

Sue suddenly remembered! ". . . Oh-no! Check on Sid!"

Tobey jumped over her and ran up the stairs. There was noise and commotion coming from Nana's room so he went there first. The shifter, in his dark, male humanoid form was in Nana's room alone, tearing her room apart looking for the cookbook.

"Hey Shifty, Kong Li is calling you. We found the magic cookbook. He wants to leave."

"Alright." The shifter answered him and as he walked passed Tobey to the door, he threatened. "You know I don't trust you. I know you're up to something. You won't leave these people – you love that girl don't you?"

"None of your business. Who cares if you don't trust me – my father trusts me and that's all that matters."

"He doesn't completely trust you either or you wouldn't have been locked in while you slept."

"I will convince him he can trust me completely-if he does what he says he will do."

Shifter changed into Sue's face suddenly. Shifter-Sue grabbed Tobey by both arms and held him against the wall. Before Tobey could react against the strong shape shifter, Shifty planted a wet kiss right on Tobey's lips. Tobey whined but his sounds of disgust were muffled. Only when the shifter was done kissing him did he release him.

Tobey bent over spitting, "Ewe! Never do that again!" Tobey wiped his mouth on his shirt sleeve.

As he followed the shifter passed the boys room, the he saw the door was shut. "Shifty - what happened to Sid and Nana?"

"Your Nana wasn't here. I took care of the boy."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	9. Chapter 9

Sue's Bad Boy 9

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

[from part 8]

"None of your business Shifty. Who cares if you don't trust me – my father trusts me and that's all that matters." Tobey glared at the shape shifter.

"He doesn't trust you either or you wouldn't have been locked in while you slept."

"Don't worry. I will convince him he can trust me completely - if he does what he says he will do."

Shifter changed into Sue's face suddenly. Shifter-Sue grabbed Tobey by both arms and held him against the wall. "Is this the face of who you love? Is this what love is?"

Before Tobey could react against the strong shape shifter, he planted a wet kiss right on Tobey's lips. Tobey, whined, and even tried to scream, but his sounds of disgust were muffled by Shifty's kiss. Only when the Shifty was done kissing him did he release him.

Tobey bent over spitting, "Er-xin Ewe! Never do that again!" Tobey wiped his mouth on his shirt sleeve.

Shifty smiled evilly as his face went from Sue's, back to his dark humanoid male form. As Tobey, still wiping his mouth followed the shifter passed the boys room, he saw the door was shut and didn't know if Sid had still been in there. "Shifty - what happened to Sid and Nana?"

"Your Nana wasn't here. I took care of the boy."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue's Bad Boy 9

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

"What do you mean you took care of the boy? WHAT did you do to him?"

The shifter just smiled and started to leave toward the stairs. Tobey let him go and ran to the boy's room. He flung the door open and yelled "Sid!"

Sid was lying near the foot of his bunk with a pillow over his face. His legs hung limply off the foot and his right arm hung off the side. The comforter had been kicked off and the lamp on the nightstand knocked over. Tobey ran to Sid and knocked the pillow off his face. "No! Sid!"

The shape shifter appeared in the doorway. "Forget him! You are wasting time!"

Tobey knocked the pillow away from Sid's face and patted his cheek, "I won't forget him!"

"He is beyond help. Kong Li is waiting. You don't want him to have to come up here looking for you."

Tobey growled when he realized what had happened, "You smothered him in his sleep with his pillow? With no chance to fight back? You really are low!" Tobey shook Sid, trying to wake him.

"I am following orders. Something you better learn to do if you don't want to suffer the same fate in your sleep."

"Shut up! Kong Li gave you orders to not hurt them!"

"Kong Li gave me no such orders. He wants them all dead, you too if he senses the slightest betrayal from you again."

"Grrrhg, you lie!" Tobey felt Sid's wrist and neck before he found a faint pulse. He moved him only enough to get his arms under Sid's back and legs at first. Then he gently lifted him off the bed. The bunk was too soft, on the floor he could position Sid for artificial respiration.

The shifter watched, barely interested in what Tobey was doing, but he enjoyed threatening this boy who dares to call himself his master's son. "I do not lie, unless Kong Li tells me too and if you know what's good for you, you won't even speak unless Kong Li tells you too."

"Just shut up – you don't know anything about what's going on between me and my father." Tobey felt Sid's stomach and nervously waited for a breath, he felt for air under his nose too, but couldn't feel or see any sign of breathing. Tobey tilted Sid's head back, pinched his nose shut and gave him his first breath. Sid's chest rose and fell with air from Tobey's lungs.

"Sure I do – I know more about what's going on than you do. Kong Li trusts me with all of his secrets."

Involved in trying to get Sid to breathe, Tobey didn't answer the shifter again. Sue got to the door as Tobey finished giving Sid his second breath.

"Oh no! Sid – no-no-no-no! Sue ran, limping severely and kneeled next to them. After Tobey gave Sid another breath, he grabbed Sue's hand and whispered, "Take over – call 911. I have to get Kong Loser out of here." Her hands shaking, she pinched off her brother's nose and gave him his next breath from her own lungs.

"Alright, lets go shifter! My father is waiting and I want to ask him if he really told you to hurt Sid." Tobey left the room praying shifty would follow him and leave Sue and Sid alone. He breathed a sigh of relief when he realized the shape shifter did follow him. He was sure if he took too long Kong Li would come in looking for him and then Sid and Sue wouldn't have a chance.

"I'm curious Tobey, what are you doing trying to save his life?"

"I told Kong Li – My Dad, that I didn't want them hurt if I joined him and he agreed. Now that he has the cookbook they can't hurt him anymore."

"No, that's not what I meant. I mean what do you care if another dies?"

"Are you crazy? No one should have to die before their time – and especially I don't want Sid to die – I love him - he's as much my brother as if we were related by blood."

"I thought you 'loved' the girl, Sue. I heard you talking in your sleep."

"When were you watching me sleep?" Tobey shuddered with disgust.

"Here, I have watched you and the others sleep many times, trying to understand my master's enemies so I don't let him down again."

"Its none of your business, but I do love Sue, just in a different way than I love Sid."

Tobey and the shifter walked together into the garden. The shifter still speaking. "How can there be 'different' love? I still don't understand, what is a brother?"

"Oh right, you were born of magic, like in a laboratory. You aren't human. You would never understand."

"What's so great about being human?"

Tobey stopped and stared at Shifty. "Love is one great thing . . . and I am human, and Kong Li is, sort of; and since I am his son that makes me your master as well – you will do as I say Shifty! And the first thing I am telling you, is to leave my family alone!" Tobey leaned toward the shape shifter in the most threatening way he could and then he turned to go through the screen door to the garden.

"Not likely." Shifty whispered, an evil smile on his face as he followed Tobey out to where Kong Li was directing the goats just to see what they were capable of destroying in the garden. They still had not been able to break the Scholar Stone. But Kong Li was less interested in the Stone, now that he found the cookbook. He just didn't know yet that is wasn't the real cookbook.

Tobey silently prayed that Sue could save Sid. When he thought about it, tears welled up. He wiped his eyes and set his jaw, sure that if it was possible, she would save him and the most important thing right then was to get Kong Li and his minions out of Wu's Garden. He went up to Kong Li and stood before him.

"Alright Kong, um Father. Shall we go?"

"Yes, my son. If you are ready. Say goodbye to this place for the last time!"

Tobey swallowed more tears to prevent Kong Li from seeing him cry.

"Goat warriors." The goats smashed one more bench and broke off a young tree right at the ground before they stopped and trotted toward their master and his son.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue gave Sid two more deep breaths before he finally coughed and woke up. She was so relieved, she lifted him by his shoulders and hugged him without waiting for him to stop coughing.

"Sid! I thought we lost you!"

"I thought you killed me Sue." he coughed some more before he could continue. "The shape shifter had your face when he attacked me. He caught me off guard and by the time I figured out it wasn't you, I couldn't kick him off. He didn't hurt you did he?"

"No, not much, but I will be more careful coming up the stairs from now on."

"What? Where is he?"

Sue chose not to explain what she meant about the stairs. "He's gone back out to the garden where Kong Li is waiting. Tobey ordered him to leave and he did."

"Tobey was here? And giving Shifty orders? Oh no – He joined Kong Li? Tobey can't do that! He wouldn't do that!"

Sue covered her brother's mouth with her hand to shut him up. "No, Sid -Tobey just saved you – he was doing the artificial respirations when I got here and he told me to take over so he could lead Kong Li away. I'm sure he's just pretending, still trying to protect us while we recover by playing along with Kong Li. Tobey is trying to get Kong Li to leave, or at least keep him busy so he doesn't come looking for us. They went to the garden, let's go see what's going on – can you walk?"

Sue was already up helping Sid get up. "I should be asking you if you can walk, Sue."

"I'll manage."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sid and Sue peeked through the screen door into the garden and saw Kong Li. He was making the portal to leave with Nana's fake cookbook in his arm. Tobey was standing right next to him, and the goats and shifter on his other side, ready to jump in. When the portal opened in the red smoke, the shifter and goat men jumped through.

Tobey took a step toward it with Kong Li's hand on his shoulder like he was concerned with helping his son safely go through. Sue couldn't stand it and limping severely, ran into the garden.

"No! I won't let you take Tobey away again!"

Kong Li turned slowly and glared at her and then at Tobey. "I thought I told you to take care of these two."

Sue had messed up Tobey's plan and he was panicking inside. Careful not to show his concern to Kong Li, when he looked at her he looked like he was pleading with her, but said nothing. Kong Li looked back at Sue. Sid had joined her.

Kong Li spoke in his lowest, scariest voice, "I am not taking Tobey. He is coming willingly . . . Aren't you my son?"

"No way – Tobey? Please! You said you loved me!"

Frantic to get out of this with Sid and Sue not harmed any more than they already were, Tobey stepped forward and answered Sue, "I told you guys last year - deep down, I am like Kong Li – I think I always have been. I have evil in my genes."

"No way Tobey! You have a good heart – you don't like seeing others suffer, not even the smallest bug – and lots of people will suffer if you help Kong Li win this! I think I will suffer most of all if you leave us!"

"I didn't want to see anyone suffer, but now I am tired of seeing myself suffer – Nana was holding me back. She was keeping me from really improving in my Kung Fu and training in magic. She didn't even start our training in magic until recently right? Father said I should have been a master by now! Now I will have what I want. Father will teach me all I need to know . . . now I don't . . . I don't . . ."

Tobey was distracted and his speech faltered when he saw Nana come quietly out into the garden. She stopped to listen quietly without making a sound. He nervously glanced at Kong Li and turned back to Sue and Sid to continue.

"Now, I don't need any of you – I am the son of a future king of the world and I am gonna take advantage of it! I am bad to the bone!"

Sue stepped closer, barely putting any weight on her injured leg. "No Tobey – Please! - you are not a bad boy! I love you – you can't go with him!"

Tobey found it very hard to keep up his act when Sue said she loved him. He blinked tears out of his eyes and yelled at her. "I told you I am bad! Kong Li's evil is inside me too! I'm tired of fighting it. Let's go, Father."

His only concern now was to get Kong Li to leave thinking he had the real cookbook – and not hurting anyone before he left. But Kong Li didn't turn to go to the portal with him.

"Tobey . . . get them." Kong Li said with threatening growl and dissolved the portal that was Tobey's only hope of getting Kong Li away from his family. He turned back to his dad and cried, "What?"

"Stop them from interfering or I will. Show them how wrong they are and prove to your father that you have really joined him!"

Even though in his mind he was screaming, Tobey set his jaw and glared at Sid and Sue. Sue looked like she might just fall down when she heard Kong Li's orders. She and Sid watched Tobey closely, looking for any sign of deception towards Kong Li, but didn't see even the slightest glimpse of hope in his eyes. Tobey narrowed his eyes when he looked at them, as he would any enemy.

Nana spoke up, still closer to the screen door. "No Tobey you can't do this! You can't fight Sid and Sue Please! We are your real family!"

"No! I know who my real family is now!" Tobey started walking toward Sue with his fists clenched. Just like Tobey knew he would, Sid stepped in front of Sue.

Nana tried again, "Kong Li! Just leave with the cookbook! People are more important! You can't make them fight each other!"

"Come now Mei Hua, does it look like I am 'making' them? Tobey seems pretty willing."

As if on cue, Tobey frowned and charged Sid with a yell. Sid put his arm back to be sure Sue was staying behind him and lowered into his tiger stance. Sid met Tobey's attack with equal force, blocking his punch and throwing one of his own. Tobey and Sid exchanged blow after blow. Sid blocking Tobey's strikes and Tobey redirecting all of his punches until Tobey delivered a right palm thrust to Sid's chest and a left to his stomach.

Sid had to take a step back to keep from falling, but still realized Tobey's punches were not as hard as he expected. He barely had time to wonder; was Tobey pulling his punches, or was he simply not as strong because of his wounded shoulder? Sid jumped back a step as Tobey continued to charge at him and aimed a chop at Tobey's shoulder, not going for his neck, but coming close enough that Tobey staggered to the side.

"Tobey! Please – stop this! I don't want to hurt you!"

Tobey recovered and got ready to attack again. "Like you can hurt me! Worry about yourself!" Tobey looked up at Sid and smiled, blowing his white bangs out of his eyes.

Sue and Nana watched, hoping Sid could snap Tobey out of whatever this hold Kong Li seemed to have on him. Sue wanted to go help, but Nana held her back. Nana was watching Kong Li to make sure he didn't interfere.

Sid readied himself as Tobey charged again and delivered a blow that seemed to be aimed at Sid's head. He blocked and went low to smash his palm into Tobey's ribs. Tobey exhaled and held the spot where Sid got in a good punch for an instant. He seemed to recover quickly and when Sid tried to kick him, he caught his leg and pushed him backwards. It was impossible to see, but Tobey held onto Sid's leg so he wouldn't land as hard as he would have.

"Stay here Sue!" Nana ran at Sid and Tobey with her heart in her throat, afraid Tobey might actually hurt Sid if he got him down. "Tobey-Stop! What lies has Kong Li filled your head with this time?"

Tobey, busy rolling on the ground with Sid, didn't stop or answer his Nana. Kong Li drank from a vial he pulled from his cape. With a wave of his hand, he and captured Nana in a force shield - like a bubble. "Stay out of it Mei Hua, let them fight it out."

Kong Li continued to wave his hand, until the bubble floated back far enough to be sure she was out of the way. Once he had his old enemy secure, he spoke loudly so she might hear him. "No lies Mei Hua, no more games – I have won!"

Nana yelled as she floated helplessly in the bubble-like force shield. Sue leaned on the one young tree in the garden that had not been destroyed yet.

Frantically kicking to try to get away from Tobey, even if only long enough to get up, Sid was trapped on his back, his body weakened from all that had happened to him too. Tobey was thrown back once, but came back and blocked the few kicks that came close to hitting him. Suddenly he screamed one of the best Kung Fu yells he ever screamed and leapt into the air over Sid. Tobey ferociously dropped elbow-first on Sid's chest. Sid screamed, thinking he was a goner.

Kong Li believed Tobey had finished Sid and so did Sue and Nana. Even though they had seen the whole thing, they couldn't believe their eyes. Hidden to the onlookers, the point of Tobey's elbow missed Sid's chest. In the dirt between Sid's chest and arm, a deep hole was left by his elbow from the force he delivered. Sid's scream made Tobey's trick all the more believable. Tobey still lie across Sid's chest to keep him pinned and just for effect he screamed at him one more time, just before he whispered quickly. "Stay down, I have a plan!"

Sid heard Tobey say to stay down, so he reluctantly closed his eyes and let his head roll to the side like he was unconscious – relieved that Tobey really was still up to something. He wished he could somehow let Sue in on the plane, but unfortunately She still thought Tobey had hurt Sid.

Sue limped over as fast as she could and stood behind Tobey as he started to stand. She gathered all her strength, ignored the throbbing puncture wound in her leg and used her good leg to leap up high into the air. As she came down, she used the same strong leg to kick Tobey near his kidney as he turned toward her. He screamed as he flew over Sid and a pile of rubble from a broken bench to land on his back in the flower bed.

Tobey moaned, but forced himself to get up quickly to charge her before she had a chance to attack again and really hurt him.

"Good one Sue, I though you were injured more than that! You will be more challenging than I thought!" Tobey yelled to make sure Kong Li heard him. Kong Li was still smiling as he watched the ruckus he caused.

Curiosity getting the best of him, Sid opened one eye just a crack so he could see what was happening. No one saw Sid roll his head slightly to watch the battle between Tobey and Sue.

With Sue injured it didn't take much of Tobey's strength to grab her, he stepped into her and used his hip to put her down. Even as she screamed, she was sure she felt him pull up at the last second so she wouldn't land hard. Tobey pulled a punch to her stomach too and leaned in a little.

"I love you." he whispered, "Sid's okay - pretend I won." Sue closed her eyes, the corners of her mouth turning up ever so slightly. Tears ran down her temples into her hair as she tried to hold still. She was so relieved that Tobey seemed to be pulling a trick on Kong Li that she hiccuped, trying not to laugh.

Nana was reduced to tears in the force shield bubble watching Tobey beat Sid and Sue up. "Tobey Stop!" She screamed over and over. Sue and Sid were already injured and Tobey didn't seem to care. She knew she had lost him forever to Kong Li. She pounded inside the bubble and yelled, "How could you?" From outside the bubble no one could hear what she said. But from the look on her face Tobey guessed that he had really upset her and mumbled. "Sorry Nana."

"Destroying Sid and Sue took too long Tobey, we will work on making you a more effective fighter – and . . . Welcome to the family m'boy!" To Tobey's horror, Kong Li hugged him! Tobey turned his head, mustering the last bit of strength he had just to keep from barfing. Kong Li didn't seem to notice that Tobey didn't hug him back, his hands hanging at his sides.

Kong Li even put the cookbook down for the hug! In another situation like this one, they would have taken the opportunity to take the cookbook back. But they all knew that this was the fake cookbook that they were hoping he would leave with. Kong Li had won the battle, and would have won the war, except for the one precaution Nana thought to take when she made up the fake cookbook for the evil villain to find.

Even when Kong Li released Tobey from the 'fatherly' hug, he kept his hand on his shoulder and looked at him. The look was not a loving look like a father would give to his son. He wasn't thinking about that. Thinking he had won it all, Kong Li decided not to leave with any of his enemies still breathing.

Tobey didn't sound as nervous as he felt when he asked, "Father, create the portal – lets get out of here."

"Not yet Son! To celebrate our victory over Mei Hua and her two loyal rejects, I want you to choose the recipe that will destroy them. We have time before we have to cook the feast. You and I will prepare and use the recipe you choose together on Mei Hua, Sue and Sid before we leave for the well at Chung Li Park – I will not be stopped this time!"

Before Tobey could even think of a way to stop him, Kong Li opened the cookbook as he handed it to him. The fake cookbook opened to a page near the middle and a cut-out rabbit popped up singing 'Happy Bunny Friend's Birthday Song.'

"This isn't the real cookbook!" Kong Li roared angrily and brought the heavy book crashing down on Tobey's shoulder, the shoulder with the giant puncture wound make by the snake's fang. Tobey fell back on his butt whining softly with his hand over the wound. Gritting his teeth Tobey forced the pain to the back of his mind to carry on. He looked up at his 'dad' and smiled in the face of the very angry magical villain.

Nana could see Tobey and Kong Li hadn't left and now Tobey was on the ground, but she couldn't see what happened clearly. She yelled, "Tobey!" at the same time Kong Li started yelling at him.

Angered even more by his son smiling at him, Kong Li pointed at him angrily. "You have betrayed me again!"

"I will betray you every chance I get daddy!"

Sid and Sue got up, Sid a little faster and helped Sue to her feet. Nana leaned on the side of the bubble trying to see what was going on. Looking through the bubble was like looking through soapy water and she couldn't hear them any better than she could see them. The part of the action she was missing, was getting ugly.

"You won't get a third chance to betray me!" Kong Li grabbed Tobey by the front of his shirt and yanked him back to his feet. He took him to the garden wall and slammed him into the stone. Tobey tried to get out of Kong Li's grip, but found he wasn't strong enough with an injured shoulder. His arm becoming more useless as he grew more tired. Kong Li pulled him forward and slammed him again.

"Ow, 'dad' – that one hurt a little." He still grinned at Kong Li, forcing a smile through the pain.

Sid started toward the enemy to save Tobey, but Kong Li saw him coming. While he kept Tobey against the wall with one hand, he reached into his cloak and pulled out a handful of green powder. He flung it into the air toward Sid and it instantly churned into a large green fog around Sid. The fog made Sid start coughing, he crossed his arms across his chest and coughing uncontrollably, dropped to his knees.

"What is that? What did you do to him?" Tobey struggled and Kong Li turned back to him. "I'm doing your job, son." Sue avoided the cloud, holding her breath and limping severely, she ran around the edge of the green fog charging Kong Li. Even with her injured leg, she ran because she was so determined to save Tobey.

Kong Li saw Sue coming and smiled, When Tobey saw her coming, he panicked, "Sue no! Stay back – run away!" Kong Li backhanded him and turned to face Sue. Tobey's head hit the garden wall and he fell to his knees and elbows, holding his head.

Kong Li shot a powerful white energy beam from his staff at Sue as she ran at him. She turned and tried to dive away. Tobey saw she wasn't going to make it. Screaming, he scrambled over almost on his hands and knees to dive on top of her. He took the energy beam for her between his shoulder-blades. The pain caused his whole body to convulse and he screamed in Sue's ear. Kong Li blasted Tobey continuously and unmercifully; the beam burning through the black padded vest and shirt he wore to his skin. Lying on top of Sue holding her arms close to her body underneath his, he prevented her from getting out from under him.

With her arms pinned, she couldn't move him, she begged, "Tobey get off!"

"No . . . protect . . . can't loose you!" Tobey gritted his teeth, didn't stop screaming and only held her tighter as the magical energy burned his back deeper and deeper.

Tobey's screams helped Sid conger the energy it took to get up and tackle Kong Li. The energy beam finally stopped and Tobey made the tiniest sound of relief, like a sob before he went completely limp, his full weight on Sue.

Sue breathlessly told him, "I don't want to lose you either you dork – I wish you hadn't have done that! Please be okay!"

Tobey passed out with his face pressed against the side of her neck and she could feel his warm breath. She rolled him off so she could get up. Tobey was hurt, Nana trapped, Kong Li was fighting Sid and it looked like he was winning. Sue hesitated for a second taking the horrible scene in there was no doubt who she had to help first. Sid's face was already bloody. Kong Li elbowed him in the jaw and made him bite his tongue. Sid spit out more blood and yelled as he charged back releasing blow after blow at Kong Li.

Kong Li blocked most, but Sid got in one strong hit against the old man's arm and he dropped his staff. Kong Li roared at Sid, "You brat! I will finish you!" Kong Li cartwheeled on his way toward Sid again, and came up with his staff in his hands. He swung the head of the dragon staff in a huge arc and with a strike against his arm Sid lost his footing and went down.

As Sid fell back again; Sue ran in and exchanged blows with Kong Li. A Dragon kick to his legs took Kong Li down, but he came right back up and a hit from his staff to the wound already on the back of her leg, took her down. Sue cried and held her knee to her chest, gritting her teeth trying not to scream.

Blood trickled from the corner of Sid's mouth and over his eye as he stood to face Kong Li again. Sue was unable to get up and join her brother. Nana trapped in the bubble and Tobey still down, Sid was the last chance they had to win this battle.

Angered, Sid charged Kong Li and threw a punch, Kong Li blocked and palmed Sid in the mouth again. He groaned holding his mouth, blood seeping between his fingers, but he came back right away punching at Kong Li; first with one fist, then a palm; followed by a round kick, toward Kong Li's head. His kick was blocked as Sid felt intense pain in his stomach. Kong Li jabbed Sid in the stomach with the pointy end of the staff. He yelled in pain and surprise. There was a flash of green, magical light around the contact point and Sid went down. He tried hard to move, but he couldn't even lift his head.

Kong Li swept across the garden, his cape billowing out behind him until he got back to Tobey. Barely conscious and face down in the grass, Tobey was still no threat. Kong Li picked him up and held him across his arms. Tobey's head and hands very limp and hanging down, Kong Li didn't care if his son was hurt or how badly. The dangerous staff in Kong Li's hand, and under Tobey's knees. Kong Li threw the spell up to create the portal, and it appeared higher off the ground than usual. Magic for levitation floated them up to go through the portal.

"Tobey!" Sue leapt up and grabbed Tobey's hand trying to pull him away from Kong Li. Tobey moaned and opened his eyes to look at her as Kong Li turned and kicked her in the chest to make her let go. She fell to the ground and landed on her back and Tobey was too weak to do anything about it.

"Sue." Tobey whispered weakly. Kong Li glared down at her. "I will not let you deprive me of having my son with me anymore! I will not come this close to getting him back and fail. The prophesy said that I would conquer with my son at my side - this is destiny!"

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	10. Chapter 10

Sue's Bad Boy 10

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

When Sue landed on the ground, she groaned loudly from the intense pain from her leg. After Kong Li hit her leg with his staff, the pain was more intense than when the snakebite first happened. Kong Li's kick to her chest, and landing on her back, knocked the wind out of her so she was having trouble catching her breath. But the absolute worse suffering she experienced was watching Tobey being taken away from her. Groaning and gasping for air was quickly replaced by irregular, pained sobs. The veins in her neck even showed from the strain as she sobbed so hard she couldn't catch her breath.

Sid could hear everything and see part of what had happened, he forced a very faint whining sound. He still couldn't move at all after Kong Li's staff hit him with a flash of magical energy. Like being weak to the extreme, being paralyzed was his worst nightmare, Tobey in trouble, and Sue injured and suffering and him not even having the strength to go to her. He found out that his tear ducts still worked as his eyes produced them.

Nana dropped out of the bubble and landed on her feet. Since he thought he was getting away, Kong Li didn't keep the force shield intact around her. Mei Hua ran over and checked on Sue. "Sue, you must calm yourself! Focus on your breathing, I will stop Kong Li!"

Sue tried to do what Nana instructed. Lying on her back she rolled her head and saw Sid still wasn't moving. Her breaths were coming like spasms and her chest hurt almost as badly as her leg did. "Sue, remember your training." Nana reminded her again as she looked up trying to come up with a plan to stop Kong Li from leaving with Tobey. She was surprised to see, Kong Li had stopped and turned back to look at her instead of jumping into the portal.

The fact that he didn't have the cookbook was already eating at him and he decided not to leave at all until he had the real cookbook. Kong Li levitated effortlessly like some sort of dark spirit no longer supposed to be in this world. Nana stood still, waiting calmly to find out what her old classmate was scheming now.

"Mei Hua. I will make you a deal. Give me the cookbook, the real one and I will leave my son in your care for a little longer. He won't be of much use to me all broken like he is." Kong Li grinned an evil grin. "You can take a few days to get him healthy for me again."

Nana frowned at first as though thinking it over, she was carefully thinking about how to handle the situation without making things worse or missing their chance to get Tobey back. Sid could hear what Kong Li said, but couldn't respond except for a sad sound in the back of his throat. Sue's eyes shot back and forth from Kong Li and Tobey, to Nana hopeful that Nana would take advantage of the chance Nana had to save Tobey. She didn't think about all the chaos and suffering Kong Li would cause with the cookbook. All she could think about was that her heart felt like it was broken in her chest from even the thought that she might lose Tobey.

Nana looked down at Sue and smiled. "Alright Kong Li. We will find another way to stop you!"

"Not likely Mei Hua, but go ahead and believe whatever you have to."

Nana went over to the scholar stone and stood so that Kong Li couldn't see her hand as she entered the combination. Even though she was taking the cookbook out, she still didn't want him to know everything. That and she didn't want him to see that her hand was shaking while she entered the combination.

Sue didn't know whether she should feel relieved or not. She did feel relieved, with a glimmer of hope that she would have Tobey returned to her, but felt guilty about it, since if Kong Li got the cookbook, many people, all over the world would suffer. A little voice inside her head told her to stop Nana, that he should not have the cookbook. One look at Tobey hanging limply in Kong Li's arms and the little voice was quiet.

Nana carried the cookbook back to where Sue lie. "Alright Kong Li – release him! - Gently!" She was suddenly afraid he would drop Tobey from the elevated height.

"Not yet Mei Hua, send the cookbook toward me, and I will send him toward you. You will have him at the same time you drop the cookbook into my hands."

Nana frowned, worried that this was not going to go the way Kong Li promised, but could think of no other way to proceed. Kong Li was not going to release Tobey until he was sure he would get the cookbook. She held her hands out with the heavy cookbook lying flat on her palms. She closed her eyes at first as she started chanting very softly. The cookbook levitated and floated from her palms toward Kong Li.

When her concentration was strong enough to keep the book rising to Kong Li until she got Tobey back, she opened her eyes. Sue had just whispered her name, sounding urgent. The cookbook was more than half way to Kong Li and he had not even started to send Tobey back.

"Kong Li - send Tobey down, gently!"

Tobey whispered, "No Nana – don't trust him," but his warning was so soft, no one could hear him except Kong Li and when he heard his son trying to warn the enemy, he dug his fingernails into Tobey's ribs to shut him up. Tobey screamed through his clenched teeth and struggled weakly.

The cookbook was still floating toward him and Kong Li refocused the magic he was using for levitation. Nana closed her fingers, intending to stop the cookbook's ascent. "Kong Li! Don't hurt him! Start Tobey coming toward me – Now!"

The cookbook continued up it's path. Kong Li had already changed the rules. "I think not. I have decided I want both."

Nana tried to pull the cookbook back using the power of her mind and magic and even leapt up at it, but missed. It was already so close to Kong Li he was able to control more than she was and she couldn't get it or Tobey away from him. Sue forced herself to sit up, a look of horror on her face.

"Kong Li! Don't do this! Give him back! - Please." she screamed.

Nana added, "You broke your word Kong Li! Release him!"

"You really are a feeble old woman – no one else would have fallen for that!" Kong Li disappeared backwards into the portal, with Tobey lying across his arms reaching weakly toward Sue, the magic cookbook lying on Tobey's stomach.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue felt numb. Stunned by what had just happened. She would have just stopped and sobbed uncontrollably over losing Tobey, but forced herself to control her reaction. Worried about her brother too, she rolled over and forced herself to get up to go to him. Once on her feet though, she found she was too dizzy to hop on one leg and fell again.

Sue looked over and called "Sid?" again hoping he would answer. Nana stood silently looking up where Kong Li, Tobey and the cookbook disappeared. Sue called to her, "Nana? Please help Sid, I can't get . . ."

Nana looked around with tears in her eyes. "Sue – I'm sorry! Where's Sid?"

"Behind the pile of rock by the daisies. He won't answer me! But, are you alright Nana?"

"I'm okay Sue." Nana pulled herself together and went to Sid. Sue hiccuped and started sobbing uncontrollably again. She rolled over on her side and covered her face with her hands.

From Sid's side, Nana instructed Sue again, "Calm and focus on your breath – not the pain."

Sid was lying face down on a pile of rubble that once was one of the stone benches where they would have their talks and teachings with her. He looked so uncomfortable lying on the broken sharp stones. His head turned to the side, in between two sharp stones, his arms and legs uncomfortably lying at strange angles on the rocks, a large rock under his hip that made his back twist unnaturally. Nana was sure he would have moved if he was conscious.

Expecting the worst Nana braced herself as she leaned down low to look into his face. "Sid?" Nana gasped! Surprised to find Sid's eyes open, she watched for a few seconds as his eyes, wet with tears darted back and forth from the rock his head was on to nana's eyes. "Sid! Can you hear me?"

Sid could only blink. Nana responded, sounding a little frantic, "Sue! Sid's in serious trouble!" She gently touched his side to lift him just enough to see under his stomach, looking for injuries. The front of his shirt was already torn away, revealing an irregular, green patch on his stomach where Kong Li' staff hit him. Yellow streaks came out from the center and stretched around almost to his back.

"Oh no!" Nana looked back into his eyes, to be sure he saw her. "Sid, try to relax. I know you are hurting – I will hurry and you will be fine!"

"Nana? Sid's hurt? What's wrong with him?" Sue cried impatiently from where she last fell down.

"Kong Li used a really bad spell on him, Sue. He is so cruel!" Seeing what was wrong with Sid, Nana knew she could move him without hurting him any more than he already was. She gently rolled him off the rocks, wincing as using her hand hurt. She suspected her wrist was broken, but ignored it. With Sid flat on his back now, she could see the large green patch on his stomach. The yellow streaks went around his middle, disappeared under his belt and went up his chest to his collarbones. Sid squeezed his eyes shut producing more tears as Nana moved him, the slightest movement caused him intense pain all over.

Sue tried again to get up. "Ow! Dammit!" she cried, but gritted her teeth and made it up to her hands and knees. She used a little tree to pull herself up. Each step making her whine, she made it over to Sid before she fell again. The green patch on his stomach scared her. "What is that?"

Sue started to touch her brother's chest, but Nana grabbed her hand. "No Sue, if you touch him, the spell will spread to you too."

"That's a spell? And contagious? I never heard of a contagious magic spell! You touched him Nana!"

"I know, I will treat myself too. We have to hurry!"

"What's happening to him?"

"Nothing if I can help it. Sue, I hate to do it, but we will need Barney to help us. We just can't tell him everything."

Not seeing Barney around since before this all started, Sue thought he wasn't home and called his phone to tell him to hurry home, that they needed him. "Nana, he doesn't answer."

"Well, we will have to move Sid by ourselves. We need something plastic to wrap him in so we can carry him to the store room. Stay with him Sue, I will get a plastic table cloth from the hall closet."

Nana though it was strange that she had to get her keys to unlock the closet door, but when she opened it she found Barney on the floor. She pulled the mop bucket out to clear the way to get to him and reached down to pat his cheek. "Barney?"

He startled awake, and started screaming, holding tightly onto both of Nana's hands. "The aliens have returned - Tobey is one of them! It was horrible, he can change his face! He hit me!"

"Barney, it's fine, there are no aliens here now. I need your help. Sue and Sid have been hurt and I need you to carry Sid to the store room where I can treat him and your father won't find out. Do you feel able to do it?"

Barney stood up when Nana offered him her hand. "Of course Nana, I will help. Sue and Sid were hurt by the aliens, weren't they? But why don't you want to tell dad?"

"I don't want to worry him, you know how he is!"

"Right."

Nana put the plastic table cloth around Sid so Barney could pick him up without touching him. He carried Sid down to the store room and put him on the table as Nana directed. Even though Sid was awake, he kept his eyes closed, the pain the spell caused him intense pain and he was not real happy about Barney having to carry him. Never had he felt so weak and helpless before! Nana helped Sue as far as the steps and then Barney had to carry her down too.

"Thanks Barn."

"It's really awful that the aliens hurt you guys! Was it Tobey that did this or one of the other ones?"

Sue turned away from him and started to cry. "Oh Sue! I didn't mean to upset you – I'm sure Nana can save Tobey too."

Sue cried even harder. Barney hugged her while she sobbed and snotted on his shirt. Nana started gathering ingredients to help Sid and she also sent Barney up to her room to get her herb bag and the salve that she was using on Sue's leg.

"Remember, if you see your dad, don't tell him what's going on, right Barney?"

"No problem Nana."

When Barney came back, Sue was really surprised by how helpful he was. He made Sue sit down and gently cut the dirty old bandage off her leg. He gently cleaned around the wound and re-bandaged it with more of Nana's special salve. Sue sat with her mouth hanging open, amazed at how gentle this wrestler was with her injury. He was as gentle as Tobey would have been and just a little more confident. Barney patted the top of the bandage, "Better Sue?"

"Much better. I didn't know you knew how to do that, Barn."

"Lots of practice taping up wrestling injuries." After he helped her up off the floor, she gave Barney a peck on the cheek and hugged him briefly. He blushed three shades of red as he went toward the kitchen, stopping at the closet to put the dirty tablecloth and mop bucket away.

Sue's leg felt better almost right away. She tested her leg with a little weight on it and even though she had to grab the edge of the table where her brother lie, she considered the test a success. "Nana, I'm going after Tobey."

"Sue you can't go alone." Nana was busy cooking the antidote to save Sid and to use on herself, just in case.

"I have to Nana, I can't do anything to help Sid. Barney is here to help you if you need him. I have to save Tobey and get the cookbook back!" Kong Li probably took Tobey to the well at Chung Lee Park right?"

"Yes, it is the only place where he can cook the feast. But still . . ." Nana had a thought and hurried to get the large green cookie jar from the shelf. "Here Sue. At least take these." She put a handful of five cookies in a Ziploc sandwich baggie and handed them to Sue. "I just made these cookies yesterday. They are transformation cookies, but I don't know what they will turn you into. You have to use them to avoid a hand to hand fight with Kong Li no matter what!"

"But Nana, if I don't know what I will turn into, how can I use them to avoid a fight?"

"I don't know Sue, but you will figure it out. These cookies should turn you into what is needed. If one turns you into a mouse you can sneak in and find Tobey, If it turns you into a bird you can fly in and free him. Kong Li will be involved in the feast, he likely won't notice animals in the park. Just hope you don't turn into a hippo or giraffe, there are some animals he will notice. Hope for a lion perhaps, but even a lion isn't immune to his magic. Just be careful."

Sue took two of the cookies out of the baggie and tucked them into the front of her bra. She poked a hole in the bag and ran her belt through it to hold the other three without crushing them in her pocket.

Sid heard the whole conversation and was screaming inside for Sue not to go alone. All he could do when she came over to him to say goodbye was look at her. He felt scared when she kissed his cheek, thinking this would be the last time he saw her and he couldn't even tell her he loved her. After Sue left, all he could do was blink and squeeze his eyes shut in frustration. Nana noticed his tears and though it was from the pain the recipe caused. "I'm sorry Sid, I have the first antidote ready." The pain was intense, but he was worried about Sue and Tobey, not his own situation.

Nana cut the rest of Sid's shirt off and unbuckled his belt to find the end of the yellow streaks. She gently spread a thin layer of the antidote that looked like tomato soup, over the green area and along each yellow streak, all the way up to Sid's neck. She used her hand to apply it since she had already touched him and might need the antidote herself.

Sid didn't feel any different and worried that it wasn't working. In his mind he repeated 'please work' over and over and prayed that he could go help Sue save Tobey before it was too late.

Nana was thinking the same thing. 'What if this didn't work?' She hadn't told Sue or Sid everything about the spell Kong Li used on Sid. This spell was the dreaded 'Lusè Shèn Guàiwu' spell; a favorite of Kong Li's, the last time he used it it took many lives and took weeks for Nana to stop it.

The green spot on Sid's belly was sapping his energy and causing him pain, but it was also growing and getting stronger from the energy it stole from him. At some point it would become strong enough to detach from him, and Sid would cease to exist. This green and yellow spot would become a beast that would infect and consume others, until there was an unstoppable swarm of them.

Lost in thought while she painted more 'soup' on Sid's belly, she was surprised to hear Calvin out in the garden, yelling about the destruction. "I really hoped he would sleep longer," she mumbled.

A small narrow window high on the storeroom wall was open and he yelled so loudly she was sure the whole neighborhood heard him yelling. Nana promised Sid she would be right back and ran out. Sid couldn't argue, but wouldn't have anyway. He didn't want Mr. Wu coming down to the storeroom to find Nana and yelling at him while he couldn't even move!

Nana explained, "Calvin – calm down! There was a devastating storm while you were sleeping!"

"Mom! There is no way! A storm didn't do this. Why is Wu's Garden the only place that got damaged?" Calvin whined loudly.

"It must have been a Microburst, but don't worry I have sent Sid, Sue and Tobey to buy materials to start fixing the garden and replanting the trees.

"First aliens and now 'Microbursts? What the hell is a Microburst? . . . Wait . . . Those three kids can't carry building supplies on their bikes!"

"Calvin, don't be silly - I ordered supplies over the phone, they will come on a truck. The kids just took the money to the hardware store and Wang's Nursery to pay for everything I ordered."

Calvin raised his eyebrow at his mother, "Money – who's money?"

"Don't worry Calvin, I am paying for it."

"Well, alright then." Calvin picked up a piece of the statue that used to be part of the fountain and hugged it like a long lost puppy.

Once she had Calvin calmed down, Nana went back down to check on Sid, but thought of something important on the way. She went to the kitchen first and asked Barney to bring the cots and sleeping bags they used on their camping trip to the store room. She intended to stay in the store room with Sid until he was well. Nana returned to the storeroom and sat with Sid. He had started sweating as the antidote battled the evil magic inside him.

Nana wiped his face with a towel damped by cool water and looked right into his eyes to say comforting things to him. Sid knew she was just trying to make him feel better by talking to him and even though he knew, he still appreciated it.

The green patch or pain had not started on Nana's body yet, so she was pretty sure she was okay and the antidote was working. The next time she spread the soup antidote on Sid, the green patch on his stomach started to shrink and Nana though they were home free, but suddenly it grew even bigger than it had been. Sid started shaking and tears ran down his temples into his hair. Nana couldn't stay by him, but kept talking to him while she went back to her books and bowls to start mixing ingredients again.

Nana favored her injured wrist, only picking up bowls and stirring with her other hand. Sid felt like something was crawling on him and he couldn't move to get it off, or even scream for help! To make him feel even more frightened, while Nana was mixing and stirring right next to him, he couldn't see her. Hearing her voice, even if she was just reading ingredients out loud, helped a little, at least he knew she was close. The yellow streaks were slowly turning green too, and now reached up along his neck to his jaw, and down his forearms. The pain and panic made Sid breathe faster, at least the muscles that controlled his breathing, and his heart muscle were still working.

His stomach was sunken in under his ribs except for rising and falling quickly with each shallow breath. The green spot on his skin stuck tightly to his skin like spandex, but really – the green was his skin, thickening and changing color as it absorbed his energy and used his cells to grow itself. It even drew nutrients straight out of his blood and he was feeling very weak and exhausted. Before Nana could get back with the latest batch of antidote soup, Sid passed out.

Nervous about seeing Sid's eyes shut, Nana touched his cheek and even lifted his eyelid with her finger before she realized he was unconscious. Nana hurried to spread more antidote on him. Just as she finished, Barney showed up with the sleeping bags and helped her set the cots up. They stacked blankets and a sheet on one of the sleeping bags on the floor for Sid to lie on, and Barney used the tablecloth to move him again. This time he threw the tablecloth away after seeing what the alien did to Sid.

Nana lie down next to him on the bunk where she could see him. She set a kitchen timer so she could get up and spread more antidote on him every ten minutes. She didn't want to take a chance that she would fall asleep. She was starting to feel very tired too.

Sue had a hard time riding her bike. She even peddled with a limp, but walking would have been harder and taken too long. The police brought them their bikes after the flood waters went down and Nana feed the officers to thank them. Sue found her gears sticking a little, but her bike seemed okay. Much better than she felt. She rode as quickly as she could for the Well at Chung Li Park.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	11. Chapter 11

Sue's Bad Boy 11  
By Crystalquirt  
Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

After dropping a short distance out of the portal with Tobey in his arms, Kong Li landed gracefully near the Well at Chung Lee Park. The cookbook on Tobey's stomach like he really did help him get it. The shape shifter and the goat men came with them this time and landed on their feet next to Kong Li. The evil man showed no concern that his son was unconscious as he took him to the well and dropped him by one of the four carved wooden poles that kept the carved, elaborately decorated roof up over the well. He placed the cookbook on the edge of the well and opened it, eager to begin.

"Shifter! Tie my son up until I can convince him to really join me. I will get ready to prepare my feast."

Before the strange and complicated events of the day even began, Kong Li was so sure he would get the magic cookbook he already had a large weatherproof duffel bag of ingredients hidden in the bushes and went to get them. They day had not gone exactly as he planned, he thought his son would have been more help, but he still got the cookbook and his son was still with him in body if not in mind.

The shape shifter created a thin rope and stood Tobey up against the pole. Tobey's chin rested on his chest and his arms dangled limply at his sides while the shifter manhandled him. Being moved made him moan softly, but that was the only sign of life visible. The spiral carving on the pole helped hold Tobey up with just one wrap of the rope tied around his waist, but the shifter let go of him and when he bent over, the rope mashed painfully into his stomach. Tobey groaned louder and woke up screaming.

"Ahhhh! What are you doing?" Tobey tried to punch the shifter, but he took a step back just out of his reach. That not working, Tobey tried kicking and reached behind the pole to find the knot. He cried out in frustration when he couldn't get the knot untied without seeing it. The shifter grabbed both of his wrists, ending his attempt to escape.

"Stop! Don't touch me! You slimy . . ." he shouted angrily, but the shifter smiled at him and leaned in close like he might kiss him again. Tobey turned his head and squeezed his eyes shut in anticipation. With Kong Li nearby, the shifter simply held Tobey's hands behind the pole while he tied his wrists together. Tobey pulled against the ropes and stomped his feet in frustration.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"Because my dear boy, the prophesy said you would join me and we would take over Chinatown. I wanted you by my side willingly, but this will have to do for now."

"You jerk! The prophesy said Kong Li would join with his son – that we would work together. Just having me here as your prisoner is not the same thing."

"It will have to do until I can convince you to join me. . . . Shape Shifter! Keep him quiet, we don't want him drawing a crowd!"

Shifty stretched a length of scratchy rope between his hands and held it up as he approached Tobey again. He pressed the rope against Tobey's lips and sawed it back and forth to make him open. Tobey gritted his teeth and refused to open his mouth until the shifter grew a third arm in the center of his chest and punched him in the gut. Tobey leaned forward as far as his bound hands would let him and exhaled loudly. He squealed when the rope pushed past his teeth and tried to bite it, but the shifter pushed too hard and sawed it back and forth preventing him from keeping a bite on it. Just getting the rope in his mouth the shifter had scratched the corners of Tobey's mouth raw.

"It would have been much easier on you to just let me do this quietly." The shape shifter's arms grew a little longer. He squeezed his eyes shut while the shifter wrapped the rope in both directions around the pole and back around front to tie the knot so it would be inside Tobey's mouth. The narrow rope cruelly stretched Tobey's lips back and strained his jaw since he was not only gagged, but his head tied tightly to the post through his mouth. Showing his discomfort and wishing he could kick something, Tobey raised one leg as he screamed into the knot.

Kong Li spoke softly as a father would to console his son, "Calm yourself my boy, this will all be over soon." He didn't take his attention off of measuring and adding the ingredients for the Zui Hou Feast, that he had waited for so long to prepare. Each spice, vegetable, magic herb and flavor went into the well, where the huge feast would mix together and all Kong Li would have to do is sip from a cup dipped out of the well to obtain all the magical power he though was rightfully his.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue parked her bike before she was even in sight of the park and went the rest of the way on foot. Still limping severely, it frustrated her that she couldn't move like she usually could. "This is going to take too long and I might lose Tobey for good! It will be all my fault!"

She forced herself to keep going and when she got to the edge of the park, instead of jumping the low fence she slowed down and climbed over. Careful to stay out of the sight of anyone that might be near the well, Sue moved behind bushes and trees until she could see Kong Li. She saw Tobey from behind. Even if she hadn't known it had to be him, seeing only his skinny arms, she would have recognized him.

Sue worked around to the other side of the well, moving silently behind bushes and the retaining wall next to a man-made creek to get a better view of Tobey and plan how to rescue him. A large lump of air stuck in her throat when she saw how Tobey was tied so tightly to the post with the rope running through his mouth. He looked so uncomfortable, but he wasn't struggling. Even from where she was, she could see the dirt on his cheeks had turned into mud from his tears. Fear and sadness welled up in her chest and brought tears to her eyes too.

Sue feared that Tobey was still unconscious from being hit in the back from Kong Li's energy beam. With his head tight against the pole, his bangs had fallen forward so she couldn't even tell if his eyes were open or closed.

Kong Li was very close to Tobey, preparing his feast in the well. The lump in her throat that she couldn't swallow might have been her heart. And it got worse when she saw the goat men and shape shifter were there too. The goat men were nearby breaking off pieces of a bush and nibbling on the leaves. The shifter sat and watched his master cooking, but could also see if Tobey even twitched he was so close.

Sue reached into her bra and took out a cookie. Thoughts ran through her mind like they were on fire. 'If I eat this cookie and turn into some small animal that can chew through the ropes, with Tobey unconscious I wouldn't be able to carry him away. A large animal could carry him, but wouldn't be able to get the knots untied without Kong Li noticing. If Tobey is unconscious, he won't be able to break a cookie . . .would the cookie still transform him if I put it in his mouth and close his jaw so he will bite it?'

'Even if I get the rope out of his mouth and he bites the cookie, transforming while he is still tied to the pole could really hurt him unless he turns into a smaller animal. Sue growled softly. There has to be a way. Maybe if I focus on stopping Kong Li before I save Tobey? But how will I do that alone?

'I wish Sid was here.' The thought about her brother brought tears to her eyes again. What would he do? She smiled as the thought 'He would do what I told him,' passed through her mind. She wiped her tears away. Afraid to use the unpredictable cookies, Sue decided to cause a disturbance of some kind and try to sneak over as a human to cut Tobey loose.

That way, after he is free, if Tobey wants to use a cookie he can and we will get the cookbook. He has more experience transforming – he will understand the risks. Who am I kidding? He will just jump in and do it without even thinking about it. Thing is – 'just jumping in without thinking', always seems to work out for him – this will work – everything will be fine.'

Finding out if Tobey was awake or not would really help her plan how to save him. She picked up a handful of gravel and started tossing them one at a time at him. Tobey felt the first tiny rock hit his leg and he jumped, whining around the large knot in his mouth, thinking the shifter had touched him. Sue covered her mouth to be sure not to make a sound she was so happy he was awake, but the sounds he made were so pitiful she felt terrible for startling him. Tobey couldn't move his head to look around and didn't see Sue in the bushes. Since the shape shifter wasn't touching him, he closed his eyes again.

As if on cue, a fire engine, ambulance and two police cars came flying down the hill toward the park with their siren's blaring. Kong Li cursed and ran to the shadows. The goatmen got behind the bushes and the shifter just melted into a dark spot under a picnic table. Sue took her chance and ran for Tobey with her knife out. Before she touched him she whispered. "Shhhhh, Tobey – it's Sue!"

Tobey opened his eyes, but she couldn't tell with his eyes hidden by his bangs. As gently as she could she cut the rope at the side of his jaw and gently pulled it out of his mouth. He moaned softly and slowly closed his stiff jaw. The corners of his mouth were red from rope burn. Sue quickly cut his hands apart and while he rubbed his wrists, got the rope off from around his stomach.

"Tobey." She whispered and hugged him gently for an instant before they went to work. The sirens had turned the corner and were right in front of the park, but they were still moving fast. Sue expected Kong Li to realize they weren't coming to the park, at any second.

Tobey dumped all of the rest of Kong Li's ingredients into the well without measuring and then looked up to see the goat men charging right at him. Sue came to his aide and flipped one, sending him head first into the well. Tobey tripped the other goat man and he went in the well too.

"They look tough, but they aren't great fighters are they?" Tobey smiled at Sue.

As they added the goat men as the last ingredient to Kong Li's feast, messing the recipe up beyond all saving it ,the magical creatures vanished in the mix and caused an explosion of red fire and smoke. Tobey and Sue threw themselves down and were protected only by the side of the well. Two unharmed white goats leapt from the fire, over Sid and Tobey lying side by side and ran away.

Sue and Tobey stood up as Kong Li approached. The effort it took to flip the large goat man wiped Sue out and she dropped to one knee holding around her bandaged leg. Tobey stepped in front of Sue and she forced herself to get up and run around the well to get to the cookbook. Tobey assumed his fighting stance once again, before his father.

"How dare you stop me again! It will be months before the well is pure enough of the ruined recipe to try again!"

"Good! Are you feeling betrayed again? . . . Daddy?"

Kong Li ran angrily at Tobey. He blocked a hit from the staff and it fell from Kong Li's hand. Sue put the cookbook in the water resistant duffel bag that had all the ingredients in it and zipped it up. Tobey leapt away from Kong Li and turned to check on Sue just as she threw the cookbook into the well.

"You put the cookbook in the well?"

"It's okay, it will be safe until we can get it later."

"There will be no later for you two!"

Kong Li was up, exchanging blows with Tobey again. Tobey blocked hit after hit, but was backing toward the well. With a surprising kick to his side, Tobey fell and on his way down, Kong Li kicked him again in the center of his back. Tobey groaned loudly and curled into a ball on his side to try to protect himself.

From the other side of the well, Sue took one jump on her good leg, touched and pushed off again on the edge of the well and leapt up again to kick Kong Li with the same leg. Her foot connected with the side of Kong Li's head. Dazed, he stumbled sideways before he fell. Sue went to Tobey and touched his shoulder gently. He looked up at her and with a clenched jaw reported, "I'm okay," trying to shake it off and pretend he really was.

"Here Tobey, we can use these and escape! Nana gave me transformation cookies. She took one out of her bra and held it out to him. "Lucky cookie. I am so jealous." Tobey grinned at her and she glared at him.

Tobey sat up just in time to see Kong Li coming back for more! With a warning from Tobey, he and Sue rolled in opposite directions at the same time. Sue tucked the cookie back into her bra and Kong Li went after her first. Slowed down by her injured leg, she hadn't gotten up yet. Tobey jumped up and charged Kong Li. His palm made hard contact with Kong Li's side and his staff came back and made contact with Tobey's legs. Tobey fell, as far as one hip, but rolled and came right back up again.

Sue on Kong Li's other side, in her fighting stance they thought they were both ready for what ever Kong Li did next. With Sue's attention on Kong Li she couldn't avoid being trapped by the shifter when he sneaked up behind her. She screamed as he lifted her off the ground with a tentacle around her ribs, her arms pinned to her sides.

Dangling in the air, she yelled in frustration, "What's the matter Shifty - you afraid your master can't handle two injured kids?"

"On the contrary, I just wanted to get my piece of you too! You know, Tobey kissed me in your Nana's room!"

Sue frowned. "If he did, it was because you looked like me!"

"You lie!" Tobey screamed at the shifter. He avoided Kong Li like a linebacker as he ran by aiming all his wrath at the shifter now. He was so angry he couldn't even see Kong Li anymore. He kicked and spun ferociously while fighting with the shifter, but he was also using a lot of energy and he was already exhausted.

Kong Li had a most cruel idea. While the shifter kept Sue and Tobey occupied, he calmly walked over to the well and grabbed the chain that hung down into the well from a crossbeam above. It was very old and rusty. One end had been attached recently by one rusty nail under the roof just so it would look to tourists like a working well. Only about seven feet long now, most of the chain rusted and fell into the well years ago.

While Tobey fought frantically with the shape shifter, trying to free Sue and not get trapped himself, Kong Li held the chain about four feet back from the end and wrapped the rest around his arm. With an evil grin he chanted, "Gei Kow No."

Flame appeared in his palm and he heated the end of the dangling chain until it was red hot. It only took a minute with the magical flame while he watched Tobey growing more and more tired as he fought three of the shifter's four long, tentacle – like arms.

With the chain glowing red at the end. Kong Li stepped away from the well toward the fight. "Shifter! Enough! Let me have my son – you play with the girl."

The shifter couldn't resist just one more hit across Tobey's back as he turned to face Kong Li. Panting, it was enough to send him to his knees until he heard Sue screaming at him to get up! He stood and faced Kong Li walking toward him swinging the chain.

"Alright son, this is a chance for you to consider whether or not you have joined the right side." Kong Li lunged and swung the chain at him. Tobey barely made it to his feet before he leapt straight up to avoid the hot chain links. Kong Li followed through in a spin with the chain to avoid hitting himself with it. Tobey ran in and almost got a good hit against his dad, but the path of the chain changed and caught him across his ribs while Kong Li's back was still to him.

Tobey gritted his teeth as he fell back, almost going to the ground. His shirt was still smoking and his skin had a deep red burn mark clearly showing the shape from three of the links. He heard Sue calling to him, but through the pain he felt it seemed like a dream. Down on one knee he pressed on his side trying to make the pain go away. Everything seemed like it had slowed down. Kong Li kept coming at him.

Seeing the hot chain gave Sue an idea. While Tobey fought against his father for his life, Sue was mumbling "Gei Kow No" trying desperately to make it work! She had her palm up, her elbow bent as much as possible under the tentacle. The shifter was too busy watching Kong Li torture Tobey to notice what she was doing.

The chain cut Tobey's upper arm as he tried to jump away and he flipped through the air before he fell flat on his stomach. Again, without giving his son a chance to recover, Kong Li swung the chain again and sliced open his leg along the outside of his thigh. Tobey cried out again and rolled onto his back, holding his leg. Kong Li noticed there was no smoke coming from his pants this time.

"Time out Tobey. I see I have to heat it up again already. Perhaps 'white hot' this time – whatdaya say son? Do you see the error you made when you chose not to join me?"

"I see the error I made when I chose not to banish you from the world forever!" Tobey glared at Kong Li as he made himself get up. He made it as far as his knees and stopped, holding his side and his arm with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

"Gei Kow No!"

It was Sue's voice! She ignited fire over her palm and it grew, burning the shifter's tentacle. When he dropped her she landed on her feet and blew across the top of the flame and it burned like a flame thrower. The shifter shrank in fear, melted into a puddle and scooted over the low wall and into the creek nearby to cool off.

Sue turned toward Kong Li with her flame still burning strong. Kong Li laughed and walked over to Tobey. Tobey saw him coming and tried to scramble away, but Kong Li caught his ankle and yanked him back. Kong Li grabbed a handful of Tobey's hair on the back of his head and pulled him to his feet!

Tobey cried, "Owwww! Let go!" and grabbed onto Kong Li's forearm trying to relieve the pulling on his hair.

When Kong Li turned to face Sue again, the well was behind him, the intense magical flame burning in his palm and he was threatening to burn Tobey's face with it. "Careful Sue - or Tobey really will be 'shrimp' toast!"

With his eyes squeezed shut in fear Tobey whined softly, "I am not a shrimp!"

Sue bowed her head in defeat and let her flame go out. She remained in her fighting stance and Kong Li decided he had enough for now. Kong Li looped the heavy chain around Tobey's neck with three quick turns and grabbed one of his kicking legs to help propel him headfirst into the well.

"I bid you both farewell, for now! Perhaps I will go check on Sid. See you both at Wu's – If you both survive."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue screamed, "Tobey -no-no-no-no." as she ran to the well. She checked over the side first, to be sure she wouldn't land on him if he was trying to climb out and didn't see him at all through all the vegetables and spices floating on the surface. Sue sucked in a deep breath and dived in head first. Once deeper than the ingredients that still floated near the top she opened her eyes, but still could barely see in the darkness. It was not a wide space, she could touch both sides – but very deep and dark.

She still didn't see Tobey so she swam down deeper. She saw Tobey still lower, and sinking farther away from her. 'Damn! The weight of the chain is making him sink!'

Tobey felt darkness creeping up on him. A darkness much darker than the mere absence of light in the well. His last thoughts were of Sue as he felt the pain of his lungs drawing in water. He couldn't prevent it he body made him try to breathe. Since he fell in, he prayed not for himself, but that Sue wouldn't be hurt trying to rescue him. After Tobey passed out, the chain pulled him down even faster.

Sue paddled and kicked hard to catch up to him. Tobey had his eyes shut and didn't respond when she grabbed his arms and looked into his face. She hurried to unwrap the chain from his neck and pressed her lips tightly to his, trying to blow some of the last breath she had into his lungs, but it didn't seem to help and now she was running out of air. She squealed under water, "Tobey! Don't you dare die on me!" The last of her breath bubbled to the surface.

She looked up and the surface was so far away, she knew she would never make it pulling Tobey up too. As a last chance Sue took two soggy cookies out of her bra. They were too soggy to break, even if Tobey could still break one. 'What do I do?'

Out of desperation, she put her finger in Tobey's mouth to open it, and shoved a soggy cookie inside before it completely turned to mush. Holding his nose and pushing up under his chin she closed his teeth on it. 'Please work! Nana said you would turn us into whatever animal we needed to be!'

The magic started instantly and when the blue glow vanished, there was the prettiest four inch long, goldfish with a white patch of scales off center on its head, swimming right in front of her and smiling!

"Sue! Put the cookie in your mouth! . . . Hurry!"

Sue almost forgot she was in danger of drowning too. When he yelled at her to hurry she realized she was desperate to breathe. She put a cookie in her mouth and bit down. Tobey-goldfish swam in circles excitedly until the magic glow faded and there was Sue, a beautiful, golden fantail goldfish!

Sue felt her gills rapidly drawing in water and she felt much better. "Tobey are you alright?"

"I think so, my tail and all my fin's work!" he laughed and bubbles rose from his fishy lips.

"Oh, you are still burned! And I have a hole in my tail." Tobey looked at the hole in Sue's fin. It seemed so small now to have been hurting her so badly as a human. He had a burned welt running down his side, near his tail. He also had other chunks missing from his fins and one from his tail. None of them were big enough on his fish body to affect his swimming.

"I am jealous Sue, your fins are much prettier than mine!" Tobey swam around her and whistled when he looked under her tail. Sue bopped him on the head with her fin.

"Of course my fins are prettier than yours. You're just a boy! We have to quit goofing around, Kong Li said he was going back to Wu's."

Tobey and Sue started swimming very fast straight down. "I hope there's a way out."

"The water has to get in here somehow. We are probably small enough now to fit. Near the bottom of the well, fifty feet down at least they saw the duffel bag that held the cookbook stuck on a chunk of 'hair' algae growing on the wall. The algae grew in long strands like flowing hair and the zipper and straps on the bag had become tangled in it.

Tobey tugged on it until Sue stopped him. "Tobey wait, we can't take it with us, it may not fit where we have to go. It will stay stuck here until we can get back to get it."

"Right Sue, but I sure hate to leave it. What if Kong Li comes back?"

"He said he was going back to Wu's, he is probably expecting us to show up with the cookbook."

"Yeah, except I don't think he was expecting us to survive."

A short distance deeper than where the cookbook got tangled, Sue and Tobey-fishes found the bottom of the well. Tobey found it the hard way, banging his nose on the dark algae-covered brick. On one side there was a horizontal crack about the size and shape of a football and a much larger crack on the opposite side of the round well.

Sue would have thought the openings were shadows except for the water current rushing around them. She and Tobey were having to use their fins and tails quickly to keep from being swept away. Sue had to work even harder with her longer, softer tail and fins. She was not built for speed or strength in this form and was already finding it frustrating.

"Oh no Sue – Dead End? What do we do now?"

"Look Tobey – we can feel the current easily, it's going this way. We can let it take us to the ocean!" She let herself drift toward the smaller of the two cracks.

"No Sue, shouldn't we go the other way?"

"What? You want to swim upstream? It's to hard and going upstream won't take us to the ocean. Come on, this way should take us to the ocean quickly, even if we don't swim at all."

"The ocean? But Sue - this is fresh water." Tobey was so tired he was really whining and not thinking clearly.

"Right Tob, but at some point the fresh water we are swimming in now will change into brackish water and then salt water as we get closer to the ocean."

"Are you sure? Maybe we should swim back up and wait until we change back, then we can climb out."

"With Kong Li on his way to Wu's? There are about ten reasons why we can't wait! We better swim fast, we don't really know for sure how long we will stay fish, or how long it will take to get back to the surface from here through the underground streams and reservoirs."

Thinking they were in agreement, she let the current take her through the crack. Tobey was still fighting the current, "But Sue, I really think we should go the other way."

Sue really had to swim hard to get back to him. Her gills were working as fast as her fins and tail. "Tobey come on! I told you – the other way may not lead to the surface for miles – if ever and it will get even smaller!"

"No – not smaller." Tobey-fish shuddered and caused a spray of tiny bubbles to flow from his gills.

"Oh I get it, you are afraid of the small, dark tunnel. Sorry Tobey – I should have realized. I promise it will get bigger this way, the current will sweep us along quickly with little effort. Would it help if I held your fin and you kept your eyes shut?"

"Maybe."

Tobey tried to squeeze his eyes shut, but found they wouldn't close!

"Sue!" he whined, "But I don't have any eyelids!" Too late, Sue pushed him into the crack. She also found she couldn't hold his fin for him so she stayed close enough to touch him by keeping his fin under hers. That way he would know she was close to him no matter how dark it got. In only a few feet the tunnel got so dark that Tobey didn't need eyelids after all. He couldn't see a thing and pretended he was drifting down a babbling brook in the warm sunshine and was able to eventually stop screaming.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	12. Chapter 12

Sue's Bad Boy 12

By CrystalQuirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The cooking timer went off in ten minutes just as Nana planned. It startled her and she worried that she had gone to sleep at all. She rushed to roll over and look at him. Sid looked exactly the same as he had. Repeating his name as she leaned over the side of the bunk, she touched his cheek and then lifted his eyelid with her finger and found him still unconscious.

"Oh Sid, Please wake up!" she begged and rolled off her cot in the other direction so she wouldn't step on him. The bowl with the antidote inside had dried over very quickly in only the ten minutes before the timer went off. It had a thin film on top that she had to peel off first. She kneeled down on the floor next to Sid with the bowl and got a glob out with her fingers.

"Well Sid, at least the spell has not spread again. I am thankful. This must be the right mixture for the antidote, but why haven't you woken up? Ai-ya. Perhaps it's best if you sleep, I hope you are not still experiencing the pain at least."

Nana spread the antidote carefully . . . sure to cover anyplace that had been affected and even a little more just to be sure. When it was done again she lie back down on the edge of her cot so she could still see him. "My son. Both of my sons and my daughter have suffered so much helping me fight my stupid battle with Kong Li. I have to ensure their safety while they recover."

Nana sat back up and got her cell phone. She tried to call Sue and Tobey and there was no answer from either. 'Hopefully they have transformed and are on their way home. I wonder if I can safely leave Sid alone to go try to find them? No, I can't leave him, not yet, but if they aren't back soon I will have to go and try to find them. I will leave Barney to watch over Sid and keep applying antidote. He will have to wear gloves and I really don't want to take the chance that Barney might become infected . . . So I hope the get home soon.'

Unable to lie back down with so much on her mind, Nana got out more bowls and ingredients and started cooking up a barrier. A barrier within the large barrier that protects Chinatown. This barrier would protect Wu's from Kong Li until she and the three teens had recovered enough that he would not try to attack them anymore at home. Keeping another barrier in place, even a smaller one would take a lot of effort and her energy, but she was sure she could get it done to protect her family.

Her wrist was throbbing and the pain from her own injury was taking it's toll on her strength and concentration. Twice while she put it together, she had to stop long enough to apply another treatment for Sid. After the second treatment she thought for sure he seemed more comfortable. His breathing had slowed and deepened more like he was sleeping, but she still couldn't wake him.

Anyone listening from near by could have heard Nana chant the small barrier around Wu's Garden into existence from the recipe she knew by heart, but there was no one around who noticed. She treated Sid once more before she set the timer under her cot and lie down.

Barney knew what was going on in the store room and understood the importance of not letting his dad know. He knew why Nana locked the door, so he was careful when he let himself in with his own key to be sure his dad hadn't followed him. He needed the two gallon container of soy sauce to refill the soy sauce bottles on the tables.

After he grabbed the soy sauce, Barney stopped to look at Sid, obviously still sick from what the aliens did to him. He found the whole thing really scary, and sad. He could tell Nana was asleep by her steady breathing and happened to look under her cot and whispered, "Here's the timer dad accused me of losing."

Barney quietly reached under her cot and got the timer without disturbing his Nana or Sid and re-locked the door when he left. Nana fell into a deep sleep.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

"Sue, how much farther?"

"I don't know Tobey, just hang in there okay? Can you taste the salt in the water? I believe we have moved into brackish water at least!"

"Is that what that is? Yuck!" Tobey moaned and clasped her fin tighter to be sure she didn't get pulled away from him.

Still in the pitch black, they were being tossed around by the current and had no idea how far they had gone, or even how big the passageway was now. With no warning Tobey-fish hit something solid and Sue slammed into him. As they were swept over the solid object, Sue could only assume they had hit a rock.

Tobey had said nothing, not even to scream. "Tobey are you hanging in there?"

Dazed from the hit, Tobey managed a moan just before they were swept up across a flat rocky area. The water was so shallow here they were both tossed above the water's surface and with only their fins, they couldn't hold on to each other.

"Tobey! Where are you, I can't find you!" Sue cried underwater. As soon as the water got deeper and the current slowed a little she fought her way to the surface. "Tobey!"

"Help!"

"Help!"

She heard Tobey's fishy voice very faintly from behind her. She fought the current and even pushed off of an edge she came up against trying to get back to him. "Tobey – where are you? What's happening?"

Sue braced her fins on one of the shallowly covered rocks and held her head above water to listen.

"Help! Sue – I cant . . ."

She worried that he sounded so out of breath. The echo's off the rocks made it impossible for her to tell how far back he was.

"Tobey! What's going on!"

"I'm . . . I'm - not - in - the - water!"

"Oh no! You must have been tossed up and landed on a rock ledge or something. You have to get back in the water!"

"No kidding Sue . . . How? - I can't stand up and walk-I can't even roll over!"

"Flop Tobey! Flop around like a fish out of water – come on Tobey! You can do it – YOU HAVE TO DO IT before you get too weak to do it!"

Tobey tried. He twisted his body and slapped his tail on the rock and after several attempts he actually felt himself get airborne, but he landed back on the rock with his gills trying desperately to process oxygen from the air. "I can't do it Sue – go on without me! Save Sid and Nana!"

"I won't leave you Tobey. Try again – Try harder! Please Tobey! I can't get to you – I can barely keep myself this close against the current!"

Tobey would have gritted his teeth if he had them. Instead he pressed his fishy lips tight together and 'flopped' again. Sue-fish heard a splash, "Tobey! You did it? Was that you doing it?"

Just then Tobey slammed into her and they both washed down stream. Sue got her fin over his tail and clamped down. "Tobey! Are you alright? Talk to me!"

"Sue it was awful – worse than the drowning I felt when I first fell into the well! It was so scary!"

"I'm sorry Tobey, hopefully we won't come to another place like that! Actually the water is moving a little slower, we must be in a bigger area now."

"It still feels tiny and dark and scary!"

"Tobey don't say that! Don't even think about it – remember what Nana said – you are in a sunny place, a babbling brook."

Tobey tried to do as she said as they drifted downstream. In only a few more minutes they slowed down even more and had to start swimming to keep going with any speed.

"Tobey, the salt is very strong. We must be very near the ocean – this ride must be almost over!"

"I can't wait!" Tobey sounded a little sarcastic, he was really tired. "Wait – it is getting brighter!" Tobey swam faster, even with Sue holding onto his tail. The dim light was coming from ahead, and now they could see each other, so Sue let go of his tail. He shot ahead. "Sue! It's beautiful!"

The underground stream opened up into a cavern with a tall ceiling. A large, calm pool lie ahead and there was a wide opening half under water ahead where the light was coming from. Tobey saw starfish, and tiny jellyfish and brightly colored little fish darting to get out of his way as he swam to the light.

"Tobey, wait up!"

Sue was really cursing her long soft fins and all she could do is wiggle her tail frantically which caused soft ripples in her tail. It looked like a cobweb blowing in the breeze and didn't move her along any faster than a cobweb could. Once Tobey was in the light, he stopped and waited for her near the surface he was so glad to be out in the open again. A shadow formed around him and he looked up just in time to see a seagull diving at him. Tobey screamed as he dived out of the way and the seagull got a mouthful of water.

"Tobey! What happened now?" He met Sue deep underwater know that he knew there were things on the surface that were hunting him.

"I was almost lunch for a bird!"

"We will have to be very careful. We are two small fish in the ocean now, there are many creatures who would like to eat us!"

"And Sue – the salt water feels weird, and it's burning my side where Kong Li burned me with the chain. Goldfish aren't supposed to be in saltwater!"

"It's okay, giving freshwater fish a dip in saltwater and saltwater fish a dip in freshwater can be good for them. It will clear up certain kinds of fungus and other ailments as long as you don't leave them in very long. You know that fungus you had on your toe? Maybe this will cure it."

"Haha Sue."

"But you're right Tobey - goldfish can't live in salt water for long. We still need to hurry, that and we don't want to get eaten."

"Hurry? Which way Sue?"

"Well we can go this way until something looks familiar or until we change back into our human selves. Just stick close to shore. Hopefully the big fish won't be in the shallow water."

"Okay Sue, but remember to stay away from the surface too – gulls!"

"This is so scary! I've never felt so vulnerable!"

"Yeah Sue, I'm starting to wish for the small, dark cave again."

Tobey kept having to wait for Sue. The fifth time he stopped he swam back to her. "What's the matter Sue, are you getting tired?"

"I am tired, but that's not it. My fins are almost useless! You make it look so easy and I am working twice as hard and not going as fast as you."

"Sorry Sue. I'll wait for you." Tobey stayed behind her for a while, but without even realizing it, he eventually passed her. He startled and turned to look when he heard Sue scream!

Sue-fish was hanging upside-down from a tentacle wrapped around the base of her tail. The slimy gray tentacle belonged to a small octopus hidden in the rocks. The octopus was the perfect eating size at Wu's garden, and also the perfect size to think a delicacy like Sue-fish was the perfect appetizer.

"Sue! I'll Save you!" Tobey swam back very fast and rammed the tentacle just a few inches under Sue. The tentacle jerked as the octopus tried to pull Sue down into the rock with it.

"Ahhhh! Tobey! Help – I don't want to be eaten!" She frantically wiggled her tail, but was unable to even pull very hard on the tentacle. He rammed the tentacle again as hard as he could, "No duh Sue! I'm trying!" Tobey even tried biting the tentacle with his delicate goldfish lips. Sue's continued struggles slowed the tentacle down slightly.

Tobey frantically rammed the tentacle over and over, but only made it jerk and retract more. On his way by Sue once he slowed down and rubbed his side to hers trying to comfort her. "I will get you out of this!" he promised and swam up toward the top of the rock cliff above where the octopus was hiding in. Sue wiggled and strained trying to pull away.

"Tobey! Where did you go? Don't leave me!"

Tobey swam up to examine the rocks and pieces of coral above the octopus and started ramming anything that looked loose. The third hit dislodged the first rock and several more crumbled and fell toward the octopus – but also toward Sue-fish!

"Sue!" Tobey pressed his lips together with great determination and swam down faster than the rocks were falling. He positioned himself over Sue and looked back to see if any of the rocks would do anything to stop the octopus. One large rock hit right over where the main body was hidden, but the rocks around the octopus protected it.

Another rock hit Tobey and he banged down onto Sue. "Ow."

"Tobey!"

"I'm okay, pull now!"

Tobey hit the tentacle with his tail, until another rock made contact with it. Sue was jerked down, away from Tobey as the tentacle was pushed down by the rock.

"Keep pulling!" He swam down and rammed the tentacle again, just as another rock joined the first one and pinched the tentacle hard enough to make it break off from the main body. Unfortunately, the tentacle piece didn't make it unwrap from Sue-fishes' tail! Still, Tobey swam away with her putting some distance between them and the octopus – that had plenty more tentacles and would still be hunting.

"Sue! Are you alright?"

"I think so – just get that thing off my tail!"

Tobey grabbed it in his mouth close to her fin where it was smallest and pulled as she tried to swim away. Finally it uncoiled and he let go of it so it would drift away and be food for something else.

Sue stopped swimming and just hung very still in the water. Tobey swam quickly, stopped a little short and drifted the last few inches to her.

"Sue?"

"Oh Tobey – thanks for saving me!"

"No problem – it's what I do. I am even the bravest, strongest and handsomest goldfish!"

Sue couldn't help but smile at him even though her fins were still quivering. He used his fins gently to maneuver close and press his head and gills along her head and gills. "I wish I could kiss you Sue."

"I wish so too. Maybe this is kissing for a fish."

"Or maybe this is." Tobey backed up facing her and swam forward until their lips met. They both giggled, "It's not the same is it?"

"No Tobey, its not the same." Sue looked behind Tobey and saw a very big mouth behind him!

"Big fish! Big fish! Tobey! Swim!" She turned to lead the way. Tobey screamed and shot right by her, but looked back a second later and saw Sue was struggling with her long, ineffective tail again. Just as the huge fish was going to close its mouth on her, Tobey shot deeper into its mouth and pushed under her tail to push her out ahead of the big fish again.

The mouth closed on the corner of his tail and sliced it off! Sue felt him jerk back a little, but he kept swimming hard and fast with his head under her tail pushing her.

Suddenly he cried, "I can' see where we're going! You have to steer Sue!" Sue started using her fins to guide them to a crack in the rocks, hoping no one else was living there, they went in just as the big fish rammed his nose on the rocks. He swam away looking for other prey.

Sue used her fins to turn around and saw Tobey's gill were working overtime. "Tobey, you saved me again! How can I ever thank you?"

"I have several ideas about how you can thank me, but for any of them, we have to wait until we aren't fish anymore. Speaking of that, we better get out of this crack before we return to our human selves and get crushed."

"Right Tobey. Of course – you are one 'Bad' goldfish."

Grinning from gill to gill he swam by her to get to the opening first, intending to be sure the coast was clear, literally, Sue saw his tail. "Tobey! You lost a piece of your tail to that big fish!"

I know Sue, it stung like the dickens especially in the salt water.

"You lost it protecting me! Tobey – I'm not gonna make it – and I don't want you to be hurt trying to herd me along and keeping me safe. You go on, find something familiar, I will wait near here until I turn back into a human."

"Alone? No way! I'm not leaving you alone!

"But I absolutely don't want you hurt again!"

'Sue, I would die for you."

"Tobey."

The both stopped swimming and just hung in the water looking at each other until Tobey broke the silence. "We will stick together and get through this. If you want I will wait here with you until we turn back. We can figure out where we are when we are humans again and can walk along the beach. For all we know, we've been moving farther from Wu's Garden."

Suddenly Sue yelled, "Tobey quick get away from the rocks – you're changing back!" He swam out a little ways as the blue magic swirled around him. A lot of water was displaced as the magic worked. Tobey grew very quickly and Sue had to swim hard to remain even close to where she was.

Tobey stood up in the shallow knee-deep water and cheered! "Yay – this means you will change back soon too! . . . Sue?"

Tobey bent forward scanning for Sue. "Sue! Where are you?"

The surge of water from Tobey turning human pushed Sue-fish up into a tide pool a few feet away. On her way back out to stay close to Tobey she found a wall of rock and coral between her and the ocean. It was what made it a tide pool. Sue backed away trying to see if there was a way around it and a large clam closed on her tail!

"Not again! Tobey! Help!." she thrashed and made bubbles disturb the surface of the water, but Tobey wasn't looking. The clam held tightly onto her tail all the way up to the fleshy part where it hurt!

Sue would have cried if she had tear ducts. Tobey was still looking for her, but he was about six feet away looking in the wrong place. Relief washed over both of them when the blue magic lit up the tide pool indicating where she was and that she was about to change back.

Human Sue stood in front of Tobey wearing her tank top and jeans, She had no helmet or riding shirt on. They had both unceremoniously left Wu's and Sue didn't even stop to put on her helmet. Tobey's black vest was gone and he was left with thin black pants and long-sleeved, but also very thin, black shirt with a large hole burned in the side. Most of his stomach all the way up to his ribs on one side were exposed to the cold air.

Sue felt around her belt and found she still had the soggy plastic bag of cookies, but suddenly she screamed and swatted at her butt! "Get it off - Get it off!" she yelled while hoping in circles trying to not put weight on her injured leg. Tobey ran out of the water to her just as she yanked her pants down right in front of him!

"Sue! I know you wanted to thank me, but really - we should wait!"

"No you dork! Get it off."

Sue turned around and forced herself to stand still. Tobey saw just under the edge of her panties, a large clam was pinching a large hunk of her skin, right at the fleshiest part of her butt!

He laughed out loud while he looked around and found two heavy sticks almost a foot long each nearby. "Hold still Sue!"

She whined through her gritted teeth and made herself hold still while Tobey kneeled in the sand behind her. She whined loudly as he pushed the two sticks between the two halves of the clam's shell and separated them like a pair of scissors. The sticks pried the clam open without hurting it and it fell off into the sand. Tobey picked the clam up and tossed it back in the water.

Sue turned with her pants still around her ankles, dropped to her knees and hugged Tobey. She was crying so hard she couldn't speak.

"We're okay Sue!" We're fine!"

"I never want to transform again! I don't know how you do it – that was so scary!"

"Well, I never want to be a tiny fish again! Most of the time it isn't that bad. Do you want to pull up your pants before anyone else comes along?"

Sue swallowed her tears and coughed, "Yeah, I guess that would be good." Tobey stood up first and helped her stand with her sore leg and pants around her ankles. She brushed most of the sand out of her pants and pulled them up while Tobey held her arm to steady her, but politely looked away.

"Thanks Tobey, but you've already seen my butt." She rubbed the clam pinch as he looked back at her.

"Not all of your butt, just the part with the clam attached to it." He smiled at her and she blushed. Sue started to limp up the beach. "Lets go see exactly where we are." She barely finished saying that and fell to her knees. Tobey ran to her side, but missed catching her it was so unexpected.

"Now I know how the Little Mermaid felt when she got her legs the first time."

Tobey helped her up and held her hand as they continued. They were both tired and Sue wobbled a lot as she tried to walk in the sand. Tobey walked with her helping when she'd let him.

They got up to the street and Sue sighed, were all the way down to Waterspout Avenue and there's Pier eleven. Tobey! How will we ever walk home from here? I barely made it just this far."

"Lets get a cab."

"We have no money, and our phones are waterlogged. Cabs don't just come down here – it's dangerous here! People disappear!"

"Oh Sue, that's just an urban legend. I will carry you home."

"You can't – it's too far and you are already as tired as I am, maybe more so."

"Okay, well I see you still have so soggy transformation cookies – what will they turn us into?"

"I don't want to do that again and I don't know. Nana said she was working on a cookie that would turn us into whatever we needed at the time."

"Well now we need to be able to get home . . . maybe birds! I would love to fly again!"

"I think we are both too tired to fly or walk as any kind of animal."

"Please Sue, lets just give it a try – there has to be something we haven't thought of yet. Maybe slithering, a snake can go fast."

"But not for very long, snakes are only good for short bursts of speed while hunting; not knowing what we will turn into scares me, but I guess we have to do what ever we have to so we can get back to Wu's as fast as we can.

Sue carefully took one of the wet cookies out without letting it fall apart. Holding it on her palm, she held it out to Tobey.

"No Sue, you first."

"Why Tobey? I don't want to at all!"

Tobey reached over and pulled the plastic bag with the cookies off her belt. "Because like you say these are 'experimental' and if you turn into something useless or vulnerable, like a mouse I can still carry you home home and keep you safe. If I go first, and turn into, say a turtle, you won't be able to get home alone, or carry me. And also, if I turn into an animal first, I won't be able to see that you use a cookie yourself."

"Alright, I guess you're right. I hate it when you're right." Sue brought the cookie back to her mouth and used her palm to put in her mouth. On the first bite she felt the magic working and the world spun – everything got huge around her.

Tobey squealed with delight. Sue looked at her small, clawed paws. "Well? What am I?" She turned and saw there was a large, flat and wide, fluffy tail behind her.

"SUE! You're a flying squirrel! Awesome! – I cant wait!" Tobey carefully got one of the cookies out and held it in his palm like Sue had. She was still nervous. "But Tobey, what good is this form? I am still small and can't really fly."

"No its better than flying, we can glide! Practically no effort!"

"Well Wait – how do you know you will be a squirrel too?"

"We were both goldfish! This will work - don't worry so much." Without giving her another chance to argue he sucked the soggy cookie in his mouth.

Nothing happened. "Must be a dud? Oh well, there is one more."

"Wait Tobey – what if . . ." Too late, he sucked in the second soggy cookie and in a blue flash he joined her as a flying squirrel. Tobey with his trademark white bangs, even on his squirrel's head and Sue had her pretty brown almond shaped eyes. Sue felt better after Tobey squirrel grinned mischievously at her and ran up the tallest Eucalyptus tree nearby. Sue chased him up almost as quickly.

"Are you ready Sue? Follow me!"

Without giving Sue a chance to answer Tobey-squirrel launched off the topmost branch first and spread out his arms and legs experimenting with airflow. Sue followed him and they glided effortlessly almost seventy yards in one jump. They landed low on another tall eucalyptus tree and climbed to the top again before jumping off. This time another fifty yards flew by. Sue squealed with delight.

With one more stand of eucalyptus trees in front of them, they climbed and jumped again. Sue had lost track of how many times they had jumped and glided for many yards and she was having so much fun she decided it didn't matter. At the end of the last jump, Sue followed Tobey down and they landed in an alley.

They ran up a wooden fence, jumped to the side of a building and up the drain pipe to the roof on the fourth floor. Sue-squirrel carried her hind leg up, but was hardly slowed down at all with three very quick working legs and she felt no pain as they flew with no weight on it. Tobey was still worried about her.

"How are you doing Sue?"

"Great Tobey – you're right - this is fun!"

"Told you!" Sue hopped up next to him on a short wall in the corner of the roof. "You ready to fly again?" he asked her.

"Its glide – and Yes!" Sue jumped off first and Tobey hurried to follow. A very disappointed orange cat landed on the wall where they had been sitting and purred, or maybe that was a growl.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	13. Chapter 13

Sue's Bad Boy 13

By Crystalquirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The two love-squirrels landed along the neighbor's wooded fence, right next door to the garden. Sue stopped staring at something ahead in the alley and Tobey eased up next to her enjoying the feel of her fur against his. He made a funny little purring sound that Sue wasn't sure was a squirrel sound, but a sound Tobey just made up.

"Tobey wait – Look." Sue cautioned, keeping her voice low. Tobey looked ahead and saw what she saw. Kong Li was in the alley, pounding on air. His fists coming about two feet away from the actual garden wall. "That's just weird." Tobey observed very quietly.

"Tobey, it looks like - it looks like Nana put a barrier around Wu's garden to protect everyone!" Lets hurry and see how everyone is. Tobey and Sue-squirrels jumped from the wooden fence to a tree in the corner and climbed it to the top of the wall. They went through the barrier like it wasn't even there; it was only meant to keep Kong Li out.

As it happened, Barney was on his way out to dump a bowl of carrot ends into the garden for compost. When he opened the door to come out, two squirrels ran in without Barney seeing them before the door closed. Barney also couldn't see Kong Li on the other side of the wall and had no idea that the most evil person in the world was standing only a couple of dozen feet from him.

Tobey and Sue had another barrier in front of them when they tried to go in the storeroom. Sue said she could still smell Nana and Sid inside. "Wow, who knew squirrels had such good senses of smell."

"Yeah, squirrels have to be able to smell nuts when they need them." Tobey giggled.

"Be nice Tobey, Sid was in real trouble when I left and he got hurt trying to save us from Kong Li."

"Sorry Sue, I was having so much fun as a squirrel, I forgot how serious this is."

"It's okay Tob. I'm a little embarrassed to admit I had fun too." Sue stood up, balanced on one hind leg and her tail and scratched on the door with both front feet. It was not loud enough to wake Nana.

"Hey Sue, there are vents low on the walls down here; there must be at least one going into the store room. Tobey and Sue ran around the wall until they came to the first vent and started scratching and chewing. The screws were loose anyway and came out easily from the plasterboard. They looked at each other before they jumped through, but even their white plasterboard mustaches didn't make Sue smile she was so nervous now about her brother's condition.

They saw the cot with Nana lying on her side on it, and then the soft pile of sleeping bags and blankets on the floor with Sid lying on his back.

"Oh Tobey! He looks like . . . he's still unconscious."

"Wait Sue, he might just be sleeping. Nana wouldn't be resting if he wasn't okay. Go on over to him before you assume the worst!"

Sue went first as they crept up on the blankets and sat next to Sid's leg. Sue-squirrel scratched on his pant-leg and didn't see any response from her brother. "Oh Tobey." When she looked for him, he was gone. Tobey was on his way up Sid's leg to sit on his stomach, he whispered, "Hey Sue! I'm king of the mountain!"

"Tobey." Sue growled in her best angry squirrel imitation and climbed up on Sid's leg to see Sid better.

"The green rash from the Lusè Shèn Guàiwu spell is gone!" Sure enough, Sid's stomach and chest had returned to his young smooth human skin. While being very careful with her claws so she didn't scratch him, Sue ran up to his chest and sat down, feeling him breathing softly made her feel a little better. Tobey sat next to her. "I think he's okay Sue. He's just sleeping. Can we paint a mustache on him?"

"You are a 'bad' squirrel too Tobey." Sue squealed softly with joy and hugged Tobey-squirrel in her tiny arms. She nibbled on his neck for a second before she pulled back to look at him.

"Yeah Yeah. Go on." he smiled and saw tears welling up in Sue's little, round brown eyes. "Oh Sue, I'm sure Sid's okay. Lets wake Nana and see how everything went . . . okay?" Sue sniffled and nodded in agreement, "I'm just so relieved to feel him breathing- I can't stop crying."

Tobey wiped her tears from her little furry cheeks with the backs of his paws before he jumped up on Nana's cot. He stood on the edge with his rear paws. He looked at her sleeping peacefully for a moment and then rooted his nose under her hand.

"Nana?" he spoke softy. "Were Back!"

Nana opened her eyes and saw the squirrel sitting by her with a white forelock. "Tobey?"

"Sue's here too. Nana."

"Sid! Oh my - I didn't mean to go to sleep! What happened to the timer?" She leaned over quickly to look at Sid and Tobey jumped back down on Sid's leg to get out of her way. Sue nervously rubbed her front paws together and asked, "How is he Nana?"

Nana touched Sid's stomach and spoke softly, "Oh good- what a relief - all traces of the spell are gone! He will be fine, he is just sleeping now.

"Thanks Nana, for saving him, and for saving us – as you can see your cookies worked wonderfully! We had quite an adventure."

"I thought you would have picked something bigger and with more teeth, but okay kids."

"Oh and we loved seeing the barrier around Wu's. Kong Li is out in the alley trying to get in."

"Oh No, I should go out and stop him!"

"Don't worry . . . you already stopped him! He can't get in through your barrier; let him stand out there and steam for a while. Go back to sleep Nana. We will rest here and keep watch outside once in a while until we change back." Sue ran up and looked out the narrow, horizontal window close to the ceiling. She could see through the flowers growing in front of the window and everything looked peaceful.

"Alright kids, I am sleepy . . . Oh, but where is the cookbook?"

"Its safe, I think – it's at the bottom of the well and if Kong Li is here, he probably has no idea we left it there. As soon as we change back, we will go get it." Before Sue finished telling her, Nana fell asleep. Sue-squirrel hopped back down to sit in her place on Sid's chest, over his heart.

"Wow Nana was exhausted." Tobey whispered.

"I'm sure saving Sid wasn't easy, it was really awful what Kong Li did to him." Sue looked over at Sid's face.

Tobey brought her attention back to the business at hand. "Before we rest, I am really hungry."

"Me too, I could even eat some of your Caramel Ketchup Pork Lo Mien."

"Great, maybe I can find you some Sue!" They crept back out of the store room through the vent and ran upstairs. Just as they got to the kitchen, Barney came in and screamed "RATS!" He grabbed the broom and started swinging at them.

Sue and Tobey glanced at each other and smiled for an instant before they jumped away in different directions. They expertly avoided Barney and his broom and in the middle of a flying leap from the top of the refrigerator, Tobey stole a fried wonton from the top of a bowl. He landed by Sue-squirrel and they ran for the door.

Just when Barney was ready to bring the broom down on Sue's head, Tobey stopped, Sue ran into him and Barney couldn't stop in time. He fell sprawled on the floor in front of them. They both ran the length of Barney's body to continue on their way. Tobey stopped by Barney's head and when looked up he smacked him in the face with his soft tail. That made Barney scream and cover his head. Barney thought for sure he heard Tobey laughing.

They skittered and scratched on the tile floor all the way back to the stairs and like it was second nature, spread their arms and legs to glide from the top step down to the storeroom vent. Once inside they ran over to Sid. The little squirrel bodies were so light, Sue's leg didn't even hurt. She followed Tobey up on the blankets to sit between Sid's knees. Tobey shared the wonton with Sue. He packed all of his piece in his cheeks just to see if he could and with his cheeks full asked, "Are you feeling better Sue?"

She laughed, "I'm feeling much better Tobey," and nibbled some more on her piece of the wonton. When she was finished Sue ran up Sid's leg to check on him again. Comforted by his soft breathing, she closed her eyes and curled up on his chest over his heart. She could feel his heart beating strongly and the comforting rhythm made her feel so warm and sleepy.

After Tobey checked out the window once more, he climbed up on Sid's chest next to her and curled up with his fluffy wide tail over her like a blanket.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Kong Li paced and clenched his fists angrily as he stared at the obstacle Mei Hua erected in front of him. "It is no use to go around front, or even from above. The barrier is like a bubble. I can't get in from any direction, just like I can't leave Chinatown in any direction." His cape fanned out behind him like there was a breeze when he sat down on an old crate in the alley to think.

How could my brat son and Mei Hua's brat girl get the cookbook back in there without my seeing them? I haven't seen them return yet. I thought they would have arrived soon after I did. But . . . perhaps they were not as skilled as I thought and they perished in the well. That means the cookbook is still in the well. Drat! Those kids have soaked it – it won't be readable.

Well if my son is gone, the prophesy as it was written cannot ever come true. Still – I must conquer Chinatown and Mei Hua so I can conquer the world. I will just have to write a new prophesy and use magic to bring it into existence. On the slim chance Tobey and Sue have survived and are just hiding until I leave, I will disappear for a while to make them think they are safe. When they try to get back into Wu's with the cookbook, I must block their way.

Even though it was a plan that would never work, since Sue and Tobey were already back inside Wu's, now that Kong Li came up with a plan, he stood up his red dragon staff at his side. "Shape shifter! Are you here?"

"Yes Master." The dark shadow near by moved down the wall and onto the ground before forming as the dark humanoid creature bowing before Kong Li.

He motioned the shifter to rise and spoke very softly in his ear. "You will go up on the roof next door and watch for my son and the girl. They could be coming from any direction. When you see them, you will keep them from entering Wu's Garden until I get back." Kong Li began reciting his lines as though someone was actually watching him. In a loud voice he said, "So shifter, we shall leave. We have much work to do to prepare for the barrier to come down. All those brats and Mei Hua will meet their demise."

Kong Li and the shape shifter stayed together until they got out of sight of Wu's Garden, and then the shifter turned into a bat and went to the neighbor's roof as ordered. Kong Li went back to the well to see if his son's body had floated to the top with the cookbook by chance.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Sue-squirrel woke up first after a few minutes nap. Tobey's tail was still covering her like a thick furry blanket. She rolled onto her back and wrapped her arms around his tail and hugged it. Her hug rumpled up his fur so she stroked and smoothed where she messed it up.

He purred and a back leg twitched, but he didn't open his eyes. Sue rolled onto her side and nuzzled his furry chest and up his neck to his ear, soon she was licking and smoothing his fur. In a squirrel's body, licking his fur . . . well, it seemed like a perfectly normal thing to do for him.

She noticed Tobey appeared to be smiling in his sleep. The fur under his little round squirrel ear needed smoothing next and Sue nibbled her way up to the messy place. Soon Tobey was giggling. Sue stopped and looked at his squirrel face with her paws on either side of his mouth.

"Guess you're awake, huh Tob?"

He opened one eye to look at her, "Wow Sue, that was nice, but you missed a spot." Tobey rolled onto his back and scratched his own stomach. Sue giggled and jumped on him. As their mouths got closer together, each softened their squirrel lips and turned their heads. Their teeth clicked together and Sue whispered "Ow."

Tobey giggled harder and started nibbling and licking under Sue's chin. Soon she was nibbling on his neck and he was nibbling on her's and they were both giggling in-between.

All this commotion and squirrel grooming going on right in the middle of Sid's shirtless chest, tickled. He started to wake up. Sid moaned so softly they didn't hear him. Soon he became aware enough to know it was giggling he heard and opened his eyes to find a pair of little squirrels grooming each other on his chest. He startled and banged his head on the wall. Then he tried to sit up only to feel a pain so intense in his stomach that he had to lie back down, panting he weakly called to Nana. "Help – ow – why are there rodent's on my chest?"

"Sid, buddy – check out the hair!" Tobey pointed to his white bangs.

"Talking rodents . . . Tobey?"

"Yep"

"And me bro!"

"What are you two doing - on me?"

"Just passing the time till you wake up or we turn back."

"Well! I woke up - Get off of me!"

Ignoring Sid's command to get off of him, Sue and Tobey sat next to each other in the middle of Sid's chest, looking at him and trying to see if he was okay. "Bro are you still in pain?"

"Yeah, a little, and I must be hallucinating. I see my friend and sister are rodents."

"We're not rodents, we're flying squirrels!"

"Oh well then, that's much better. What did Kong Li do to me?"

"Nana said it was something really bad, but you will be okay!"

"I don't feel okay." Sid growled as another spasm grabbed his stomach. "Why are you guys squirrels? Last I saw Kong Li was taking you away Tobey, what happened?"

"Yeah, we stopped him and we can give you more details when you're feeling better Sid. We should be changing back any minute and we have to go get the cookbook back before Kong Li realizes where it is." Tobey hopped up on the edge of Nana's cot and scooted his nose under her hand, then his body, and even with her hand on his soft furry back, she still didn't wake up. He hopped up and down under her hand and before Nana was really awake, she closed her fingers around Tobey's body and shook him while she squeezed.

"I can't get the mustard out of the bottle Calvin, you let it dry out again! I told you it is too old to use!"

Tobey squealed, his eyes bulging. Sue yelled, "Nana – you're squishing him!"

Nana woke up and saw what she was doing. "Oh Sorry Tobey! I don't know what came over me!"

She dropped Tobey in her lap as she sat up and looked at Sid. She leaned forward and patted his cheek. "It's good to see you are awake Sid. How are you feeling?"

As if in answer to her question, Sid groaned and covered his stomach with both hands. Nana felt his forehead for fever and pulled down an eyelid. "Other than the nausea how are you feeling?"

"Weak and sore all over and I think Tobey gave me fleas."

Tobey's expression made him look like 'devil squirrel' as he hopped up on Sid's leg. "How would you like a squirrel running around in your pants, Sid?"

Nana scolded him, "Tobey! Shush . . . Sid, the last of the symptoms should pass soon with a little more time and rest. As soon as you feel able to eat, I will make you some tomato soup. Tomatoes are full of the nutrients and natural chemicals you need to reverse the Lusè Shèn Guàiwu spell.

"Thanks Nana." Sid looked back down at the squirrel's sitting on his chest. "Tobey . . . I knew the whole time you couldn't have really betrayed us. I'm glad you're okay."

"Well, I couldn't leave Sue. Look at her, doesn't she have the most beautiful, long bushy tail you have ever seen?"

Sue giggled and wrapped her tail around her body looking as sexy as a squirrel can. Laughing hurt Sid's stomach so he just smiled and held his stomach. Tobey yelled excitedly, "Sue! You're changing back, get off of Sid!"

Sue hoped off of Sid and ran a short distance away. The blue glow swirled around her getting larger and larger until the glow was human sized. When it vanished Sue stood in the squirrel's place. She immediately kneeled by Sid and held his hand. Sid moaned and rolled part way on his side, his stomach caving in under his ribs as the pain grew more intense again. Breathlessly, he told Sue, "Good to have you back MeiMei."

"Good to be back, but I wish there was something I could do for you to make the pain go away."

"I know Sue, thanks – I can take it – not gonna let a little pain beat me down . . ."

"That's good Sid, Nana said it won't last much longer." Sue said quietly, not really believing her brother could shake it off as easily as he hoped. "Tobey, you better get off of him, you should be changing back any second, right?"

"Right Sue."

With perfect timing, the blue glow swirled around Tobey squirrel just as he hopped away from Sid. When the blue vanished, there was a mostly human Tobey standing before them. Sid tried to laugh, but wound up coughing and holding his stomach. Sue did laugh and point.

"What?"

"Look behind you!"

Tobey did, and saw a large squirrel's tail still coming out from under his belt and reaching up between his shoulder blades. "Oh No! Why do I still have a tail? . . . Nana!" Tobey ran for the kitchen to find her.

"Sid badly wanted to laugh, but it hurt. "Why does Tobey still have a tail? You don't have any squirrel parts left do you?"

"No, I have no squirrel parts left, Sid. Tobey ate two cookies. They were soaking wet with sea water and the first one didn't seem to work. I was worried something strange would happen when he grabbed the second cookie so quickly. I hope Nana can help him!"

"Don't worry, Tobey looks good with a tail MeiMei. . . . Ow, oh man – I'm getting really tired of hurting!" Sid covered his eyes with his arm so she couldn't see the tears that were welling up. Sue didn't have to see, she could hear it in his voice.

"Sid, try to relax, mind your breathing . . . " Sid looked up at her. "I know Sid, it's easy for me to tell you to relax; I know you can get through this!"

Tobey ran into the kitchen, forgetting Barney would be there too. He didn't get his tail hidden in time. "Wow Tobey! You have a tail! Is that what the aliens did you you? Nana told me you were okay now and wouldn't try to hurt me again."

"What? I wouldn't hurt you Barney, much."

"Nana, did Tobey lose his memory?"

"A little bit Barney, he will remember soon I'm sure." Nana put her arm around Tobey's shoulders and smiled as she felt his soft tail. "Come on, lets go back to the store room, Tobey."

"Nana! Can you get rid of my tail? It's gonna make school even harder to deal with!"

"Oh come now Tobey. You don't look at all bad with a tail."

Tobey glared at Nana and turned as she guided him toward the stairs to the storeroom. Sue looked up as Tobey entered looking very sullen. Nana went to the counter and started mixing bowls full of ingredients. Tobey kneeled by Sid, next to Sue. Sue couldn't help but touch his tail. "Aw Tobey, your tail is just as soft as it was when we were squirrels."

"Not funny Sue we have to go get the cookbook. I can't be seen in public like this!"

"It's dark, and even if someone notices, just tell 'em it's a costume. I have to go put my bathing suit on, I'll be right back."

Sue left and Nana brought Tobey a bowl. "Here Tobey, this should work." He drank it right away and checked himself again for a tail. "The tail is still there!"

"It may take a while to work. Your tail won't stop you from riding your bike or getting the cookbook back."

"Okay Nana."

"See you soon Sid. We will be back with the cookbook as soon as we can."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The shape shifter saw Sue and Tobey leaving and called his master. At the park, looking into the well, Kong Li opened his phone but didn't bother saying anything. The shifter heard him breathing and spoke up first with his report. "I never saw them go in, but they just left. They are heading back toward Chung Li Park."

"Which kids are coming, do you see Mei Hua? Is one of them my son?"

"The old woman is not with them; One of them is your son, but he has a large fluffy tail."

"A tail? Why? . . . Never mind. Join me as soon as you can would you shifter?"

"Yes master."

Kong Li continued talking to himself. Now I know why my son's body is not sunk in the well. There is still a chance for the prophesy to come true then. Too bad, I wanted to write my own prophesy for Chinatown."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey met Sue in the hall and they went to the garden. Tobey got to his bike, but realized something was missing. "Sue, Where's your bike?"

"It's still near the park, with my helmet!"

"Grab Sid's helmet and hop on with me; I'm sure he won't mind."

"Tobey don't you want to put on your bathing suit?"

"No Sue, it's too tight, it will pinch my tail. I'll just dive in with my boxers."

Sue sat behind Tobey on is bike as he stood up to pedal. "That I would like to see!"

"Really Sue? Why?"

"You can be so clueless. I'm saying you're cute, and seeing you in your boxers would be fun."

Tobey blushed. Sue couldn't help but pet his tail as they went. Tobey had to admit even if only to himself that it felt great. He was sorry when they got to her bike and she got off of his bike to ride her own. They rode side by side the short distance to the Wishing Well.

Tobey looked around carefully to be sure they were alone. "Sue, it's so dark and small - can we dive down deep enough to retrieve the cookbook? Nana should have made us transformation cookies to turn us into dolphins."

"I can hold my breath long enough to get down there and back. I'm sure you can too . . . " Sue parked her bike and looked at Tobey. "Oh I get it, you really don't want to go down there. It's okay, you stay up here and keep watch. Your tail might get water-logged and make it hard for you to swim."

"I think your right Sue. My tail would be heavy if it was wet – and I need to stay up here in case Kong Li shows up." Tobey took his helmet off and hung it on his bike.

Sue took Sid's helmet off and hung it on the handlebars with her own helmet and then she took her biking shirt off and kicked her shoes and pants off, spreading her clothes over the seat of her bike.

Tobey whistled. "Wow Sue nice bathing suit! . . . and you fill it out very well!"

"Thanks Tobey, I guess I'm gonna have a scar on the back of my leg, does it look awful?"

"Nothing on you could look awful – even a wart would look good."

"Well, I guess that is a compliment." Sue smiled at him. "This should just take a minute." Sue jumped up on the side of the well.

"Wait a second Sue." he jumped up next to her. "I have to have me some of you before you go." Tobey pulled her close and hugged her. She tilted her head to the side a little for a kiss. Tobey kissed Sue passionately before he pulled back a little. "Go get Nana's cookbook so we can get home and relax . . . and be careful!"

Sue smiled at him and dived in head first for speed. The ingredients that Kong Li dumped into the well earlier had all sunk to the bottom, except the spices that gave the water a strange taste and burned her eyes. She swam quickly down and found the bag with the cookbook, even with her eyes closed most of the time.

Tobey stood on the side of the well and watched her disappear into the darkness, only a bubble or two rose every few seconds breaking the eerie silence in the park.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

"Tobey, have you been playing with your Nana's magic ingredients again?"

During their kiss, Kong Li was able to sneak up and as Tobey watched for Sue in the well, he slipped up silently right behind him. Fortunately he spoke first, unable to ignore Tobey's bushy tail. Tobey jumped across the well and turned to face him.

"Kong Li! I thought you were busy trying to break through one of Nana's force shield's. How come it's so easy to block your access to places? Maybe next time she will just put a barrier around you and make you stay put someplace where she can keep an eye on you!

"I assure you it is not easy to put up a barrier against me. I'm sure your Nana is exhausted." Kong Li blew across his hand causing a cloud of red spice to form over the well. As Tobey jumped away from it, it exploded.

Sue felt the blast all the way down in the well and looked up. She swam faster pulling the bag with the cookbook in it behind her, afraid Tobey was in trouble.

The blast burned a large patch of fur off of his tail and slammed him to the ground. He rolled over to look back at Kong Li and found him standing over him. Tobey tried weakly to crawl away.

Sue threw the cookbook up on the side of the well and climbed up after it. She gasped when she saw the situation. Kong Li was standing back from the well waiting for her, holding Tobey upside down by his tail.

"Let him go!"

"I will, but come now Sue, you should know by now that I want something in return."

"No! You can't have the cookbook! I will make you let him go!"

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Tobey continued . . .


	14. Chapter 14

Sue's Bad Boy 14

By Crystalquirt

Tobue, romance, adventure, violence.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

"And just how will you make me do anything? Especially let him go!" Kong Li held Tobey more toward Sue just in case she couldn't see him well enough. Sue stood up straighter and answered, "I will fight you. Put Tobey down so he doesn't get in the way!"

While she spoke, she stepped sideways to her bike, still limping a little and never taking her eyes off of Kong Li. She grabbed her favorite tank top and pulled it on over her bathing suit top.

"Are you sure you want to fight me Sue? All alone? You might very well be about to die for him."

"I would gladly die to save him – but I am not planning to die today! - Put him down I said!"

"That is so sweet you don't want my puny son to get hurt in this Sue. Alright, lets do this." Kong Li smiled at Sue with an evil look on his face as a black shadow rose behind him The greasy looking shadow formed into the shape shifter's male humanoid form.

He handed Tobey, still hanging by his tail to the shifter. "Here Shifter, mind this for me would you. If he wakes up before I take care of little Sue Yi, restrain him. I haven't decided whether to keep him around to fulfill the prophesy or rewrite a new prophesy where he doesn't exist at all."

Fear showed on Sue's face more for Tobey than for herself. "What do you mean a prophesy where Tobey doesn't exist? That's not possible – you can't hurt him – at least with Tobey still alive, there is a chance the prophesy will come true. Although Tobey will never join you!" Sue was only trying to make Kong Li realized it would be bad for his plans for Tobey to die.

"I don't need him, he is too weak. Being so concerned with being a 'good boy' in his Nana's eyes makes him weak. He would have been much stronger if he had been raised by me instead of that weak, foolish old woman."

Tobey moaned softly and Sue looked over at him hanging by his tail, now in the shape shifter's grip. Kong Li, thinking she was distracted, charged her with his staff back, ready to swing it at her head. The dragon head figure on the end of the staff cut her cheek as she leaned back to avoid the strike. Blood welled up in the wound right away and she covered the stinging cut with her hand in mid-air as she did a one-handed cartwheel to get away.

The bottom of her shoe connected with Kong Li's jaw and he dropped his staff. He looked off balance for a moment. From the landing after her cartwheel, she leapt forward with both feet first and hit Kong Li in the chest before he could pick up the staff again. He staggered backwards as he reached into his coat.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The concussion from Kong Li's magical herb explosion still made Tobey's ears ring after he woke up. He found himself hanging painfully by his tail. The small movement to see who or what was holding him, made him dizzy. "Ow my tail! I can't believe you're pulling my tail – I think you broke it!"

"Hold still or I will break it off!"

Tobey gritted his teeth and kicked suddenly. Surprised, the shifter let go. Tobey landed in a somersault and tried to run. The shape shifter caught his tail again. Tobey screamed, "That hurts! Let go!"

Laughing at Tobey's struggles, the shifter carried him to hold him over the well. "No! Not in the well!"

The water level in the well was down more than ten feet and it wouldn't be an easy task to climb out. It's also dark and small and Tobey really didn't want to go in again! "You monster! I won't let you put me in the well!"

Tobey swung his fists at the shifter, but shifty just lengthened his arms to hold Tobey farther away. Tobey screamed in frustration and tried to hit above his back where the shifter was holding his tail. He couldn't get a hard enough hit to the tentacle to make the shifter let go and the base of his tail really hurt after being yanked and held up by it for so long. Tears of pain and frustration welled up as Tobey screamed.

With no warning, Tobey's tail vanished and he fell toward the water. At the last second he caught the edge of the well with only his fingertips. The shifter pulled back to hit Tobey's fingers and got a huge surprise when Tobey boosted himself up using only his fingertips and kicking with his legs. Tobey grabbed the end of what the shifter called an arm. In the shifter's surprise, he pulled back, pulling Tobey the rest of the way out of the well. Tobey did a back-flip over the shifter and landed behind him running toward Sue.

Kong Li threw some more of his explosive herbs at Sue, but Tobey got there just in time to knock her down. He covered her head as the herbs exploded over them. Kong Li picked up his staff and turned as the herb dust cleared. Sue and Tobey stood together facing him. Sue ready for a fight, Tobey pulling his pants up and tightening his belt now that his tail was gone.

"Awe, too bad my son. It looks like you lost your tail. You will lose your head next."

Sue and Tobey charged together. Tobey went low with a palm for Kong Li's stomach, Sue went high with a kick aimed at his head. Kong Li blocked Tobey's strike and ducked. Sue went over Kong Li's head as he punched Tobey in the shoulder. Tobey fell back and didn't move right away, but Kong Li had to leave him alone to fend off an attack from Sue as she ran back at him from behind.

"Shifter! I don't have time for this foolishness. Do something about these two!"

Tobey and Sue glanced around quickly, but they couldn't see the shape shifter anyplace. Sue moved close and exchanged a series of blows with Kong Li. Kong Li blocked a punch aimed at his nose with his forearm and with his leg, went after her injured leg again. This time she saw it coming and jumped to avoid him.

Tobey threw a punch, but Kong Li caught it and flipped him over his shoulder. Sue threw a punch of her own. Kong Li knocked her hand away so hard her whole body turned away and he hit her across the back with his staff. Sue stumbled forward against a low stone pillar with a drinking fountain on top. She caught herself with both hands to keep from hitting her face on a sharp edge near where the water comes out.

Tobey recovered, leapt into the air from the side and Kong Li barely blocked his kick. Tobey landed on his feet and kicked again, Kong Li blocked and palmed him in the chest. Tobey heard Sue scream as he fell back rubbing his chest.

Before Sue could push herself off the drinking fountain, tentacles formed near the drain and grabbed both of her wrists. Sue screamed in surprise, and struggled for a moment trying to pull her hands away. Using her head, she realized the shifter was in or wrapped around the drinking fountain.

Sue chanted "Gei Kow No!" to create fire in her palms. It had worked so well before. But this time the shifter was ready. He already had a tentacle against the plate to turn the water on and pressed her hands against the head where the water comes out. Fire never appeared over her palms so she threatened him verbally – her last defense. "Shifty – let me go or I'll . . ."

A humanoid face appeared in the bowl, the drain became a mouth. "Or you'll what?

"Sue!" Tobey turned from Kong Li and ran at Sue. Kong Li threw powder in the air and the blast blew him forward off his feet.

"Tobey!" Sue pulled at the tentacles that held her tight to the drinking fountain and yelled "Gei Kow No - Gei Kow No!" Water still ran over her hands and kept her from creating the flame.

As a result of the explosion, Tobey landed under a picnic table with his ears ringing loudly. "Oh man, how many times can I be blown up in one day?" He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand up.

As the dust settled, Tobey ran to Sue. He heard her chanting "Gei Kow No," and realized what she was trying to do, even though the shifter was keeping her hands wet. When he got close, shifty-drinking fountain, sent out another tentacle and smacked him across his stomach like a whip before it grabbed his ankles and pulled his legs together. When his feet were yanked together and forward, he fell back on his butt. "Ow – my butt! . . . you jerk! - Gei Kow No!"

A small flame popped into existence over Tobey's hand and he leaned forward forward with it, holding the flame against the tentacle wrapped around his legs. The shifter yelled and the tentacle shriveled. Tobey jumped up and ran toward Sue, but Kong Li appeared behind him and with his staff and took his legs out from under him again. The shifter, angry at losing Tobey, made sure he wouldn't lose Sue. Another tentacle formed and went around her waist, holding her close. Not giving up, Sue pulled on her hands with all her might, and still couldn't break the shifter's hold. Water started flowing stronger and the head of the fountain became larger, like a fire hose. The high pressure water hit Sue in the face and she made a gurgling noise like she was fighting to keep her head above water while drowning in the ocean.

"Sue!" Tobey frowned angrily at Kong Li, blocking him from saving Sue. He had Tobey pinned on his back with the staff across his neck. "I will finally be rid of both of you brats and write my own prophesy!" Tobey gritted his teeth and pushed up on the staff trying to get some relief at least.

Sid came around the corner on his bike, across the street and up into the park. His stomach still hurt a little, but he didn't let Nana make him stay home when Sue and Tobey were probably fighting for their lives. Sid got to Sue first, leapt from his bike without stopping, but once he was next to her, he didn't know what to do. He tried covering where the water was coming out, but the water was coming out with such force he couldn't redirect it, but a tiny bit, at least giving Sue a moment to take a deep breath.

Sid didn't realize that the shifter had taken over the drinking fountain, he didn't know what was going on at all and the tentacle that grabbed him around the neck totally surprised him. Sue gurgled, "Sid watch out!" but too late. Sid went to his knees pulling at the tentacle as it choked him.

With a strong push on the staff against his neck, Tobey looked passed Kong Li and saw what was happening to Sue and now to Sid too! He growled angrily and started kicking. Kong Li laughed, ignoring him until Tobey got his knee bent enough to make contact with his ribs. Tobey pushed the villain off and as he got up, chopped Kong Li's arm and made him drop his staff.

With a spin, Tobey elbowed Kong Li in the face and followed it by a kick to his chest. Kong Li fell back and looked up to find a picnic table coming down at him. Tobey turned the picnic table upside down on Kong Li and jumped up and down on it twice before running to Sid and Sue. This time, before he ever got close, he shouted "Gei Kow No!" and with all his anger and fear aimed his palms and a strong flame at the shifter. When his flame hit the water spray, steam rose. He focused on the tentacle around Sid's neck first and when Sid was released he went to his hands and knees unable to do anything but cough.

Tobey aimed his flame at the tentacles holding Sue's wrists, but there was too much water pouring out too close by. He also didn't want to take a chance on burning her hands so he aimed at the base of the drinking fountain, the rocks spewed steam like a geyser as Tobey concentrated and made the flame even hotter. A sound like burning jet fuel made Tobey feel even more powerful. He grinned maniacally as the rocks and mortar near the bottom of the drinking fountain were red hot and the shape shifter recoiled. Sue's hands were released and the water stopped flowing.

It was the shifter's turn to scream and shrivel down to a puddle. The puddle oozed down into the grass and disappeared completely. The last of the water had pushed Sue away and she landed on her back coughing. Tobey ran to her and helped her turn onto her side. Sid saw Kong Li was still under the picnic table and came over to sit next to Tobey to check on Sue. He covered his stomach with both hands as wave after wave of nausea assaulted his stomach.

"Sid you don't look so good! You should be home resting!"

"No way! I'm sorry I couldn't help - I didn't know Shifty could do 'drinking fountain' and control the water like that! Thanks for saving both of us Tobey."

"Its fine Sid, it was a surprise to us too. I'm glad you showed up, but I'm worried about you!" Tobey was worried about Sue too; she was still coughing and hadn't even tried to get up yet, "Sue?" She nodded, and squeezed Tobey's hand, meaning she was okay, but couldn't stop coughing long enough to say anything.

"Stay with her Sid!" Tobey ran behind the well and grabbed the bag with the cookbook inside. Before he could get back to the siblings with it, Kong Li roared and threw the picnic table off. Tobey tossed the cookbook to Sid and yelled, "Get the cookbook and Sue out of here!"

Sid put the bag down by Sue and stood up to face Kong Li with Tobey. Even though the pains in his stomach kept him from standing up straight he lowered into his fighting stance. Tobey moved to stand in front of Sid. "Sid No - stay back – get Sue out of here, you're in no shape to fight!"

"You're not in much better shape than I am – there's no way I'm leaving you here alone Tobey."

"I have to do this alone - please get Sue and the cookbook out of here." He spoke quietly but Kong Li still heard him.

"No body is leaving. Tobey, I will either get rid of you now, or you can join me. One last chance."

"You won't have to get rid of me! I will kill myself before I will join you! Without me the prophesy can't come true . . . right? You will never take over Chinatown and with me gone, you will have to give up - Sue, Sid and Nana won't have to fight anymore!"

"Tobey, you're kidding right?" Sid whispered.

"No Tobey." Sue whispered. Her chest ached from coughing and nearly drowning in the water spout but she forced herself to stand with the boys.

"Makes no difference to me either way Tobey. You weren't listening. I will write my own prophesy – one where my success is not dependent on you or anyone else."

"That's not possible, you can't write your own prophesy! The best you can hope for is a prediction – and you will be wrong!" Tobey charged Kong Li, determined to end the war right then. Tobey's hands and feet flew at Kong Li so fast he couldn't even see where the next hit was coming from. Kong Li was driven back. Sid smiled at Tobey's skill and seeing Tobey seemed to be holding his own, held onto Sue to keep her on her feet while he picked up the bag with the cookbook inside.

Kong Li saw the siblings with the cookbook and yelled. "You will not leave with the cookbook!" He leapt up into a back-flip to avoid Tobey's last kick. When he landed he ran toward Sue and Sid.

Tobey landed in front of him, blocking his way. "Give it up Kong Li!"

"My son, I am tired of being disappointed by you! I brought you into this world, I will take you out of it!"

"Not before I save them and defeat you! I might not make it – but I will take you with me!" Tobey ran at Kong Li and threw a punch, but Kong Li caught it, before Kong Li could flip him, Tobey threw himself backwards and kicked Kong Li in the knee. Kong Li landed on Tobey in a most undignified way. Sue and Sid made it to their bikes but stopped to make sure Tobey was going to get out of the mess he was still in.

"Oh man, Sid, you don't think Tobey's really planning to die to avoid the prophesy do you?"

"No way. He can't – he has to know his death won't stop Kong Li."

Tobey screamed in frustration as he pushed Kong Li off and got up to run. Kong Li caught his leg and he fell again. Tobey kicked with his free leg knocked the staff from Kong Li's hand again. Kong Li let go of his leg to get his staff back. Tobey got up and ran at Sue and Sid screaming "San-Lu-Le – go – go – ride! San-Lu-Le!"

Sue pushed off first, Sid right behind her with the bag over his shoulder. Tobey jumped from a distance, landed next to his bike, but before he could stand it up and get on, Kong Li sent another cloud of explosive magical herbs at him. Tobey covered his head and rolled under a bench. Sid fell off his bike and Sue turned around to help. Before the dust settled Tobey rolled back to his feet and charged Kong Li again. With no martial arts skill – just pure determination, Tobey tackled him. They fell back next to the well again. Tobey reached into Kong Li's cape and his hand went right into the pouch with the cayenne pepper exploding herb mixture.

"No! You don't know what you're doing!" Kong Li yelled at him. The red powder was all over Kong Li's side and cape when Tobey stepped back with a big handful of the magic herbs. Kong Li stood up, his mouth hanging open as he looked at the red powder that covered him.

"Tobey! Put that down, open your hand slowly – or we will both blow up!" Tobey grinned maniacally and tackled Kong Li again, leading with the fist that held the powder. Sue and Sid turned with expressions of horror on their faces as the powder exploded between Tobey and Kong Li. The whole bag of herbs exploded all at once and shook the ground under their feet. Even the roof over the well collapsed and the siblings couldn't see Tobey or Kong Li. Limping and holding onto each other, they made their way through the red dust cloud toward the well.

"Tobey!" they both called over and over, but there was no answer.

"Tobey! . . . Oh Sid, you don't think . . . "

"No way – keep looking for him!"

They couldn't see much of anything in the red cloud at first, but they found the well with the roof sitting lopsided across the top. All four heavy wooden poles snapped in half. Sue and Sid pulled and pushed boards and chunks of the carved roof away from the well. Tobey or Kong Li weren't anywhere around the well.

"Oh no! Maybe he fell in!" Sue and Sid looked worriedly at each other and both grabbed the edge of the roof to lift it up. It was really heavy and they barely moved it at all. Sue got under it, intending to pick the edge of it up across her shoulders, but once under it, saw the bricks lining the well had been broken, and only Tobey's fingertips were visible holding onto the edge!

"Sid! Tobey's down here holding on! - help me!" She crawled in farther and looked down. Sid crawled under the roof with her and she lie on her stomach so she could reach down. She found Tobey's upper arm and grabbed it tightly. He held onto her arm in return. Sid grabbed his other arm. It was so dark they could barely even see their friend's white bangs. With a huge splash under Tobey's feet, Kong Li shot from beneath and grabbed onto Tobey's legs.

The extra weight pulled Tobey's arms away from Sue and Sid. "Tobey! What's going on!" Sid cried. They were holding onto his wrists but he was still slipping. "It's Kong Li! Just let go guys! You'll be pulled down too! Tobey was kicking and trying to swing Kong Li into the wall to make him let go.

"No Tobey – we can't let go – keep trying to kick him off!"

Tobey made the decision for Sid and Sue. He twisted his wrists out of their grip and fell with Kong Li into the water. "Tobey!" he heard Sue scream as he went under.

"We need more room to climb down and pull him out. Sid pushed up with the edge of the roof across his shoulders and grunted loudly. The roof shifted and dropped off the back side of the well, Sid continued to push until it was up even higher. Sue used one of the broken posts to brace the roof so it would stay up and Sid could let go.

In the water, Kong Li pulled Tobey down to face him. He grabbed Tobey's shoulder's and shoved him against the wall. He even pushed with his feet so he could smash Tobey harder. Tobey thought he was trying to crush him, the pain in his shoulder threatened to make him pass out. He used his arms together in an arc and broke the hold Kong Li had on him. He followed through with a downward stroke to propel himself up toward the surface. He felt his foot connect with some part of Kong Li as he swam up. Tobey hoped it was Kong Li's head he kicked.

He got to the surface and took a quick breath before he looked back under the water's surface trying to see Kong Li. Sue dived in after Tobey, while Sid waited to pull them up. He got Sue's jeans off her bike and held the bottom of one pant-leg while the other reached almost down to the surface.

Tobey pressed back against the wall as Sue dived in. She quickly righted herself in the water and surfaced. "Tobey!"

"I'm okay Sue, mostly." Tobey shut his eyes, so he wouldn't have to see the dark, small space he was in.

"Where's Kong Li?"

"I don't know, I broke the hold he had on me underwater and when I got to the surface I couldn't see him anywhere." Tobey put his head back to smooth his hair back in the water. When he peeked at Sue, his hands smoothing his hair, Sue grabbed him around the chest with both arms and hugged him tightly. Tobey lowered his arms around hers and hugged her, kicking with their feet so they wouldn't sink. Sue's pants-leg appeared right in front of his face.

"Climb up you two. One at a time please- and I will try not to barf on you."

"Gee thanks Sid, I appreciate it. Come on Sue, you go up first."

"But," she started to argue, he put the pant-leg in her hand. "Okay."

Sid pulled Sue up and helped her over the the broken edge of the well. Then he dangled the pants back down and Tobey grabbed on. Sue helped Sid pull Tobey up. When he was up high enough they grabbed onto his arms and pulled him up the rest of the way. Sue and Sid lie back away from the well, and pulled Tobey up between them. He lie on his stomach, panting and coughing.

"Hey guys, what happened to Kong Li?" Sid rolled facing them and propped his head up on his elbow. In between coughs, Tobey managed, "I don't know Sid, he was just gone after I broke the grip he had on me. I am so bad, my badness completely scared Kong Li away!"

"Yeah Tobey, I'm sure that's it, you are one bad boy! We're all in trouble if you ever turn evil."

Sue interrupted, "Tobey and I were down to the bottom of that well, there was no place large enough for a human to get out from the bottom. Even as fish Tobey and I barely made it."

Tobey still coughed violently, Sue rolled onto her side; she and Sid patted Tobey's back wishing they could help him stop coughing.

Tobey choked out, "Kong Li tried to drown me!" he pushed himself up as far as his hands and knees and coughed really hard twice more.

Sue sat up with him rubbing his back and leaned down to watch his face. "Speaking of Kong Li trying to kill you, that was some speech you made about being willing to die with him - Tobey, you scared me!"

"I was just throwing him for a loop until you guys could get out of here with the cookbook." Tobey sat up. The front of his shirt was sliced open horizontally and a red welt had raised across his stomach. "Tobey, what happened there?" Sue sounded worried all over again.

"Shifty whipped me with a tentacle. You should have left so you'd have been safe."

"We would never leave you to fight alone Tobey, we have to stick together . . .urp." Sid covered his mouth and rolled away from them quickly. On his hands and knees he barfed a large amount of green slime.

"Ewe, Sid!"

"Sorry guys, I hope that's the last of the Lusè Shèn Guàiwu spell we ever see."

Sue got up and helped Sid up. They went a few feet away, behind the well to the creek. Sid rinsed his mouth and washed his face in the cold water. When they got back to Tobey, he was trying to get up. He looked very weak and Sue grabbed his arm to steady him. He grabbed his butt with both hands and groaned.

"Tobey, what's wrong?"

"My butt still hurts really bad where he pulled my tail – I think he broke it!"

"But Tobey, your tail is gone."

"Gone or not, it still hurts – I think he broke my butt."

Sid ruffled Tobey's hair and laughed softly. Sue and Sid each grabbed one of Tobey's arms and walked him over to his bike.

"Wait guys, where are my pants?" Sue asked, her bathing suit and favorite shirt wet, she was getting a little cold.

"Uh Oh, I must have dropped them into the well."

"Sid!" She whined.

"I'll dive back in and get your pants Sue."

"Tobey – no you won't! I don't think I could pull you up again."

Tobey rode his bike, standing up to pedal to keep his butt off the seat all the way back to Wu's Garden.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

The three kids went single file down the stairs to the store room. Nana was still lying on the cot asleep. Tobey observed, "Nana still looks cute when she's asleep."

"Shhhhh," Sue cautioned.

Sid sat down on the blankets that he had been lying on while he was sick. He took the cookbook out of the bag and looked at it. They all three smiled when they saw the cookbook only got a little damp on one edge. It was still intact and readable! Sid motioned silently for Sue and Tobey to go. He would sit with Nana until she woke up. With his legs crossed in front of him, he sat up straight in meditation posture to wait for her to awaken.

Sue and Tobey left silently. Once out in the hall Sue whispered. "Go upstairs Tobey. Get a shower and I'll put bandages on your boo boos."

"Alright Sue . . . thanks." Tobey was grinning from ear to ear. "Will you bandage my broken butt too?"

"Um no, but the next time I kick your butt, I will kiss it and make it all better!"

"Woohoo!"

"Shhhhh! You'll wake Nana!" Sue held Tobey's hand as they climbed the stairs and on their way by the kitchen, Barney saw Sue and ran over.

"Hey Sue! . . . Oh, um . . . Hey Tobey. Are you all better now? Your tail's gone I see."

"Yeah Barney, I'm all better now."

"Good you were a pretty scary alien dude. Sue, can I talk to you, in private?"

"Sure I guess, I'll be right up Tobey."

Barney put his arm across Sue's shoulders and guided her a short distance away near the cash register, not really caring if Tobey heard. Tobey didn't go upstairs without Sue. He frowned and waited in the hallway where they left him, but he could still see and hear them.

"Sue, how is your leg? Do you need me to put another bandage on your wound?"

"Actually, I don't think I will be needing to wear a bandage anymore."

"Wow, it couldn't have healed that fast could it? You had a bad wound."

"It's not completely healed, but I want to leave the bandage off for a while to be sure it is good and dry. Nana is taking a nap, when she wakes up she can check it and let me know if she wants me to bandage it."

Barney really wasn't listening to what Sue said. "You have really pretty legs Sue. You look great in your red bathing suit. How come I've never seen you wear it before?

"Tobey and I went swimming, um . . . they had a free swim day at the pool."

"Neat Sue, wish you would have told me, maybe dad would have let me go . . . I was just thinking, you like me huh?"

"Of course like you Barney."

Tobey could be heard growling. "Sue, come on -" he whined.

"I'll be up in a minute."

"But the shower is waiting. . ." he meant he was waiting.

Barney answered, "Whats the matter, Tobey? You two aren't planning to shower together are you?"

"No!"

"No way! But we've had a hard day, Sue you need to get some rest."

"Go on Tobey. I will be up before you get done in the shower."

Tobey grumbled and went up the stairs. Just out of sight he stopped and listened for what Barney had to say.

"Now, Sue, I know you've been flirting with me for a long time. Would you like to go out with me?"

"Sorry Barney, I guess it's too late, I'm kinda seeing someone."

"No way – Who? Does he have these?" Barney flexed his muscles for her.

"His muscles are fine. I gotta go." Sue turned to leave and upstairs, Tobey grinned.

But Barney stopped her, "Wait Sue! Who is he? Is it that guy Will, in your history class?"

"No, it isn't Will, its Tobey!"

"Tobey! Haha, No Way! - but Sue, he's months younger than you, and such a shrimp – and he never baths!"

"He does so bathe, he just teases about not bathing to be funny and he isn't a shrimp! Tobey is cool and kind and awesome."

Sue turned and ran up the stairs. She almost ran into Tobey. He grabbed her and hugged her. "Darn that Barney! Who does he think he is saying those bad things about me?"

"Don't worry Tob, I know none of it is true."

"Thanks for what you said."

"I meant every word."

"I think you're pretty awesome too."

"Thanks," Sue pulled away from him but still held onto both of his hands. "Tell you what. I will go get us something to eat and meet you in your room after you shower."

"I don't want you going back down there with Barney."

"Oh Tobey don't worry, Barney lost his chance at me! And I am so happy he did loose his chance – otherwise I might have never realized how wonderful you are!"

Tobey smiled and watched her go. When she was gone, he kicked up his heels and ran to grab clean clothes to wear after his shower.

Sue had a picnic spread out on a blanket in the middle of the boy's room floor when Tobey got out of the shower. His hair was still wet, combed back and he wore a clean white tank top and gray shorts. He sat down with her on the blanket. "Eat slow Tob, I'm gonna run get a shower, I'll be right back and eat with you."

In the store room, Nana woke up and found Sid sleeping on the blankets. She felt his forehead and watched him breathe. "Sid, I'm so happy you made it back." she whispered and reached over him to get the cookbook. "I will go check on Sue and Tobey in a few minutes, they probably went up to their rooms to sleep. No doubt they decided Sid would stay here and watch over me. Such sweet kids."

When Sue came back from her shower, Tobey had finished off the rest of the food she had brought up. Wearing her nightgown and robe, she sat down on the blanket teasing him. "Wow, guess you were hungry, Tob. Where did you put all of it? Do you have a hollow leg?"

"Nope, its all right here." He leaned back and patted the bulge in his usually flat stomach. "I think I will put on a few pounds and start lifting weights."

"Awe, but then you won't be you – you are perfect the way you are."

"Thanks Sue, but are you sure you wouldn't want me bulked up a little?"

"No way, you are fine, you are a great fighter, strong when Mr. Wu isn't looking, You are my 'bad' boy!"

Tobey looked down at the blanket. "I still worry that I might really be 'bad' what if I take after Kong Li?"

"Tobey, I thought you were okay with this, why are you doubting yourself again?"

"I don't know Sue, sometimes I scare myself. I felt all weird and good at the same time when I beat on Kong Li, and while I was making the fire – well . . . afterward it was a little scary. Learning magic, being as powerful as Kong Li someday, sounds good."

"Will learning magic and being powerful make you evil?"

"I don't know."

"Nana is very powerful. Do you think she worries about being evil?"

"No, but then Kong Li is not her father. He was good once – Nana thought of him as a good friend. I am kind now, but what if . . ."

Sue found his hand and gave it a squeeze. "Tobey, you will always be who you are. You will make good decisions to benefit yourself and others around you. You could never put yourself first and become so greedy as Kong Li. You-are-not-bad. You may very well 'rule' the world one day, but you won't get there by hurting others. You are still my 'bad' boy! All evil will fear you!"

"I am pretty bad . . . um . . .meaning good right?"

"Right Tobey." Sue leaned forward and he did the same. Their lips met for a long, passionate kiss. "See, I'm sure Kong Li isn't that good a kisser! You are already better than your father."

Tobey blushed. "Wow Sue, you can sure lay the praise on thick."

"You deserve to hear it and I mean every word. Now lie back on the blanket. I brought Nana's first aid kit, I want to see the cut on your stomach first."

"Its not really a cut, more of a welt."

"What ever . . . it was bleeding we have to make sure it is clean and covered." Blushing, Tobey raised his shirt and lie back.

Sue made a face when she saw it. "Ow – Tobey that looks like it hurts!"

"It stings a little."

"I will try to be gentle."

Tobey never said a word or reacted as she put antibiotic ointment across his stomach and covered it with doubled gauze and tape. "Where else."

"I hurt all over. I don't think anything else bled, not recently."

"Your shoulder where the snake bit you looks much better, but you move like it still hurts."

"It probably wouldn't hurt anymore if Kong Li would stop hitting me there."

"Very true. You have my orders to rest and take it easy until you heal up this time." Sue checked his arms and legs and higher under his shirt.

"You have a lot of bruises . . . roll over."

Tobey obeyed, pretended he was a puppy, panting and barking softly. "Good boy," Sue played along. She raised his shirt and checked the backs of his legs. Sue rocked to the side and got her legs under her like she was getting up. Tobey started to roll over, but she pressed gently on his shoulder and held him down. "Stay there."

"Okay - are you going to bandage my butt?"

"No, still not doing that. Why don't you ask Barney to do it? He knows how to put on a good bandage."

Tobey growled. Sue smiled mischievously. She rose up a little more so she could reach Tobey's shoulder's and started rubbing his back. He tensed up at first. Sue had never touched him like this. As she kneaded his muscles, very gently over the bruises, Tobey started to relax. "Oh Sue, thanks, but I don't deserve this."

"An-jing, you deserve more pleasure than I can give you in a lifetime."

Tobey stayed quiet as instructed and in only minutes he felt like a puddle of warm pudding. She worked down to the waistband in his shorts and back up again. Then she lie next to him on her stomach. He opened one eye and looked at her. "Thanks Sue, that felt great."

"Your welcome."

"Want me to do you?"

"You better rephrase that."

"Do you want me to rub your back?" it was Tobey's turn to grin mischievously.

"No, not now, I have another idea."

Sue got up and went to her room. In a couple of minutes she came back carrying her CD player. It was already playing soft music. She sat the CD player down and closed the door. Tobey noticed she had also put her black Capri pants and her pink leather halter top on. Her hair was down around her shoulders and she had a little eye makeup on too. The choker he made for her was around her neck. Tobey sat up.

"Wow Sue you look great! What's going on?"

"Get up Tob."

"Why?"

"I want to dance with you."

"Thanks, but I am too sore to dance. I don't think we need anymore exercise right now."

"Not that kind of dancing. Listen to the music . . . Slow dance."

"Oh, that I think I can manage."

Tobey stood up and together they pulled the blanket to the side. Sue stood waiting for Tobey, he paused to look at her again. "You are beautiful."

"And you are one handsome, bad boy – with luscious hair."

"I know," Tobey laughed softly and put his hands on her sides at the waist. Sue put her hands on his shoulders and they started swaying gently to the music. Sue smiled at him and pulled him closer almost right away. He looked a little nervous, but didn't argue. She put her head on his shoulder with her arms under his and around his back. Tobey kissed her head and put one hand up to stroke her hair while they rocked gently back and fourth, barely moving at all. Soon Sue's hand found it's way to his left butt cheek, she held him softly, but firmly so she didn't hurt him in case he really was still sore from having his tail pulled. He blushed and smiled. He kept shifting his weight back and forth to the music.

After he had his chance to do it on his own, and didn't. Sue moved his hand herself from her waist, to her butt. It was good she couldn't see his face, because he had the goofiest grin ever. His stomach got butterflies. He left his hand where she put it, but it was 'dead hand'. He was afraid to move it in case she wouldn't like it. She knew he was suffering, she could even smell his fear. After a minute or two she pulled away just enough to look into his eyes and he took the opportunity to put his hand back up to her waist.

"I love you Tobey." she whispered.

"I love you too Sue." he blushed. His voice sounding shaky.

"You better never leave me, or I will kick your ass."

Tobey laughed softly. "Promise you will kick my ass if I ever do anything mean or bad to anyone, ever."

"I promise."

"And if you kick my ass, will you kiss it and make it all better like you promised?"

"Yes Tobey,"

"Then it is almost worth it. It would be mean if I put ants in Barney's bed right?"

"A little bad, but it doesn't qualify for an ass kicking if I decide to help you do it."

Tobey's stomach fluttered as he tried not to laugh out loud. He changed the subject, "Your pink top looks really good, still."

"Thanks Tobey,"

"I feel terrible I lost my leather pants. I guess Kong Li still has them."

"Probably, but at least he can't wear them."

"Yeah right, but Sue, your top still smells funny . . . like snake poop."

"Shut up and kiss me."

Tobey was happy to obey. After their kiss, they held each other close and started swaying again. Nana tapped on the boy's door and got no answer, she thought Tobey might already be asleep, but still wanted to check on him. She cracked the door and peeked in. Sue and Tobey were still slow dancing with soft music and dim lights. Nana smiled and went back downstairs to see if Sid had any wounds that needed tending to.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[TD]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]

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